2 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Mar 16, 2026 07:07 PM IST
More than 13,700 teaching positions lie vacant across India’s two central school networks, the Ministry of Education told Parliament on Monday. Union Minister of State for Education Jayant Chaudhary, responding to a written question in the Lok Sabha, confirmed that 8,618 posts remain unfilled in Kendriya Vidyalayas and a further 5,083 in Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas — bringing the combined shortfall to 13,701 positions.
Chaudhary cited multiple drivers: the opening of new schools, retirements, resignations, promotions, inter-departmental transfers, and school upgradations — all of which create fresh gaps faster than they can be filled.
“Filling up of vacancies is a continuous process, and efforts are made to fill up the vacancies as per the provisions of the relevant recruitment rules,” Chaudhary told the House.
To plug the gaps in the interim, both KVs and JNVs have been engaging teachers on a contractual basis — a stopgap that the ministry acknowledged is necessary to ensure classroom instruction is not disrupted while regular recruitment proceeds.
“Efforts are made to recruit regular teachers at the earliest so that the interest of students does not suffer,” Chaudhary said, adding that the track record of KVs and JNVs in public examinations “clearly demonstrates that academic standards and students’ performance are duly maintained.”
