Mumbai: The Maharashtra School Education Department on Friday approved 4,860 posts of sports teachers for primary schools run by Zilla Parishads across the state, in a move aimed at strengthening physical education at the grassroots level.
The decision will ensure that students in government primary schools get regular and structured exposure to sports and fitness activities. A separate cadre of sports teachers will be created for Zilla Parishad schools, addressing a long-standing gap in physical education, particularly in rural areas, officials from the education department said. Under the plan, one sports teacher will be appointed for each cluster resource centre. Cluster resource centres are key educational hubs, established at the sub-block levels to provide academic, technical, and professional development support to multiple elementary schools.
For years, many primary schools in rural areas functioned without trained physical education instructors, resulting in irregular sports periods or classes being conducted by teachers without specialised training. Education experts and school managements believe the new appointments will place physical education on par with academics and bring much-needed consistency to sports programmes in schools.
The government expects that dedicated sports teachers will boost student participation in games, improve physical health, and foster discipline, teamwork and leadership skills. Officials also said the initiative would help identify sporting talent at an early age and promote a stronger sports culture within the government school system.
However, the move has triggered concerns among teachers’ unions and managements of aided schools, which continue to face an acute shortage of sports teachers. Recruitment in aided schools is carried out through the Pavitra portal, a process that often involves multiple levels of approval and prolonged delays. School managements are required to obtain roster clearances from education officers, deputy directors and, in some cases, examination boards, leading to missed deadlines and stalled recruitment.
“Certain conditions under the roster system or the PAVITRA (Portal for Teacher Recruitment in Allotted Vacancies through an Integrated Teacher Recruitment Application system) should be relaxed, and recruitment to these posts should be carried out on an urgent basis in the forthcoming academic year,” said Sudam Kumbhar, an education advisor and former city school principal Sudam Kumbhar said procedural hurdles have made it difficult for aided schools to fill vacant sports teacher posts despite a clear need. He said the disparity in staffing between Zilla Parishad and aided schools must be addressed to ensure equitable access to physical education for all students.
District-wise data shared by the education department shows that Pune has received the highest allocation, with 306 sanctioned posts. Ratnagiri follows with 251 posts, Ahilyanagar with 246, Nashik with 244 and Raigad with 228. Satara has been allotted 223 posts, while smaller allocations include Bhandara (60), Hingoli (68), Washim (71) and Dharashiv (80).
“As per the said Government Resolution, information regarding vacant posts in all private aided schools should also be collected. Further, in accordance with the provisions of the National Education Policy, new teaching posts for subjects such as Art and Music should be created in all aided schools. In addition, new posts such as counsellors should be sanctioned in every school, and immediate approval should be granted to these posts,” Kumbhar added.