Students and others during an event held at GMS Chendang village under Tuensang district. (Photo Courtesy: CRSU)
Moses Hongang Chang
Sangsangyu | May 20
Government schools across eight villages under the Changsang Range in Tuensang district are facing an acute shortage of teachers, forcing local communities to hire private educators with their own resources to keep classrooms functioning.
The issue surfaced following an education tour conducted by the Changsang Range Students’ Union (CRSU), Sangsangyu headquarters, from May 4 to 8 across Sangsangyu, Hakchang, Maksha, Nyinyem, Konya, Kejok, Keshai and Chendang villages.
According to findings shared by the union and village authorities, several Government Primary Schools (GPS), Government Middle Schools (GMS) and Government High Schools (GHS) in the area are operating with inadequate manpower, with staffing levels reportedly failing to match student enrollment and institutional requirements.
The CRSU and village representatives alleged that the situation has worsened as some schools have had teachers transferred or deployed to other stations without replacement appointments being made by the Department of School Education.
They said the practice has left several rural schools “practically hollowed out,” severely affecting the academic environment and day-to-day functioning of institutions in the range.
In the absence of sufficient government-appointed teachers, village authorities said communities have been hiring and financially supporting two to three private community teachers in several schools over the past two to three years to prevent classes from shutting down completely.
Community leaders said the arrangement, though necessary, has become increasingly unsustainable for villagers already managing limited resources.
“We have been trying to ensure that children continue receiving education, but the burden of running schools cannot rest entirely on the communities,” a village representative said during the inspection.
The inspection team also highlighted the condition of Government Middle School, Chendang, describing it as one of the most serious examples of the staffing crisis.
According to the CRSU, the school was upgraded from a Government Primary School to a Government Middle School in 2013, but no additional teaching staff has been properly sanctioned or posted since the upgradation.
For the past 13 years, the school has reportedly been functioning with only a single science teacher, creating what the union described as a severe academic and logistical deadlock.
The union and village authorities further stated that schools across the range are in urgent need of qualified Science, Mathematics, English, Hindi and general subject teachers.
A CRSU official said, “Education is a fundamental right and that ensuring proper staffing and the smooth functioning of schools, particularly in remote rural areas, remains the responsibility of the state government”.
The official appealed to the Government of Nagaland and the Department of School Education to urgently deploy adequate teaching staff based on enrollment strength and institutional requirements, warning that further delays could seriously affect the future of hundreds of students across the eight villages.
