New Delhi: After various teachers’ organisations repeatedly raised concerns over large-scale deployment of teaching staff for election-related duties, a Delhi principals’ association has now joined the chorus, warning that the prolonged deputation is disrupting the functioning of schools.
While no official govt figure has been released, teachers’ associations estimate that around 8,000 govt school teachers have been deployed for booth-level officer (BLO/eBLO) and Special Intensive Revision (SIR) duties in the city. Officials admit that of the total 13,000 BLOs, a majority are teachers from govt schools, including those under Delhi govt, Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and other agencies.
The principals’ association has sought rationalisation of the deployment, saying staff shortages are affecting regular classes, academic activities, sports and cultural competitions, as well as implementation of child-safety protocols.
The teachers’ associations had earlier warned that such large-scale deployment, particularly after schools reopen following the summer vacation, could deepen staff shortages and hit classes X and XII students. Reports have also highlighted the extent of the disruption, with some Delhi govt schools claiming that all or a majority of their regular teachers were deployed.
In its representation to the director of education, Vice & Principals’ Association of Delhi has expressed “deep concern and dissent” over the large-scale deputation of teachers as BLOs and for SIR duties, saying the prolonged deployment “severely affected the normal functioning of schools”.
The association said the impact was being felt beyond classroom teaching. “Heads of schools are finding it increasingly difficult to maintain and effectively implement the prescribed Child Safety SOPs, as adequate staff presence and supervision are essential for ensuring the safety and security of students,” it said
The shortage, it added, was also making it extremely challenging to conduct regular classes and academic activities and facilitate students’ participation in zonal sports, cultural competitions and other co-curricular activities.
For teachers already working as BLOs, the concern is not over the importance of the election duty itself, but over the scale and distribution of the burden. A teacher working as a BLO said that when too many teachers are taken from the same school, lesson planning and classroom continuity inevitably suffer. “Election work should be distributed more evenly across schools instead of leaving some institutions with severe staff shortages and others relatively unaffected,” she said.
A key concern raised by the principals’ body is the manner in which teachers are being picked for these duties. It alleged that assistant electoral registration officers and assistant returning officers were directly deputing teachers without prior consultation or coordination with the directorate of education or heads of the schools concerned. “Such unilateral deployment adversely affects academic planning and school administration,” it said. Seeking a coordinated mechanism between education and election authorities, the association said the number of teachers deployed should be rationalised and school heads consulted before deployment orders are issued.
Delhi govt has maintained that it will look into problems faced by schools. An official said, “The exercise is important for the nation. Separately, a policy was announced in June under which the period spent by guest teachers on Census duty will be treated as official service. Since guest teachers are generally paid on a per-day basis, this ensures they do not lose salary, teaching-experience credit or other service benefits while carrying out a govt-assigned national duty. Govt has taken steps to ensure that the exercise is carried out smoothly.”
The extent of the disruption emerged earlier at a Delhi govt school in Bhalswa, where approximately all 20 regular teachers were assigned SIR work, leaving just 15 guest teachers to manage around 1,200 students across 22 sections. At another govt school near GTB Nagar, 22 teachers were put on BLO duty, raising similar concerns over how regular teaching could continue with a large part of the staff away.
The duties themselves are extensive. Teachers given SIR work may be required to perform full-time election duties at voter centres or ERO offices, handling data entry, scrutiny of forms, clerical work and BLO-related tasks. Their responsibilities can include verifying Forms 6 and 8, assisting in the preparation of draft electoral rolls and carrying out other work assigned by election authorities, including beyond normal office hours when directed.
Earlier, Govt School Teachers’ Association had warned that the absence of thousands of trained teachers could affect the education of lakhs of students and sought the immediate appointment of guest teachers against vacancies created by SIR duties. It flagged particularly the impact on Classes X and XII, with the election-related assignments expected to continue till Oct 7.
