Kerala education crisis: Salaries of 8,000 teachers at risk as 2,000 schools lack certificates

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Around 2,000 schools across Kerala are currently operating on temporary fitness certificates, placing the salaries of nearly 8,000 teachers in jeopardy. According to a government directive, these educational institutions must secure official fitness certificates within two days, failing which the salaries of the teachers working there will be withheld.

The directive has triggered a bureaucratic controversy, as indications suggest that the Director of General Education, Snehil Kumar Singh, issued the order to freeze salaries without the prior knowledge of General Education Minister N. Shamsudheen.

At the beginning of the current academic year, approximately 5,000 schools had commenced operations under temporary fitness certificates. The certification process faced severe bottlenecks initially due to a stringent requirement demanding clearance reports from five different government departments. Although the government later relaxed this condition and authorised local self-government institutions to issue the certificates, progress remained slow. Local body engineers reportedly delayed clearances due to concerns over ageing building structures and required electrical wiring inspections, leaving thousands of schools without valid documentation by the end of May.

Under the Kerala Education Rules, these institutions are legally restricted from functioning without proper fitness certification. Among the 2,000 schools still operating on temporary permits, the vast majority fall under the Lower Primary (LP) section. Local government engineers are strictly demanding structural stability certificates for older school buildings, a process that requires the intervention of engineering experts and entails hefty professional fees. These temporary certificates are valid for a maximum period of only six months.

Beyond structural integrity, several schools have been denied fitness certificates due to inadequate infrastructure, including poorly maintained school kitchens and the lack of mandatory ramps for differently-abled children. While the government had previously introduced a relaxation allowing wiring inspections to be certified by a licensed wireman—permitting temporary operations in the interim—officials note that some school managements have misused this extension. With the two-day deadline looming, thousands of teachers and hundreds of schools face an imminent operational crisis.