90 is a crowd: Not enough seats, teachers in Delhi govt schools

(AI-image) The overcrowding crisis in Delhi government schools has sparked alarm among education advocates and students alike

NEW DELHI: The recurring problem of overcrowded classrooms in Delhi govt schools is back in focus.In a letter to the Delhi education department, an education activist has sought “urgent intervention” to limit the “excessively high student-classroom ratio” in several govt schools, particularly in east Delhi. According to the letter, the problem is in several schools.

Some class sections have 70-80 students and, in certain cases, close to 90 students read in the same class.

Too little room to learn

“The situation is particularly serious in senior secondary classes (XI and XII), where the student-classroom ratio remains exceptionally high, especially in classes involving subjects such as physics, chemistry and biology,” education activist and lawyer Ashok Agarwal, who has written the letter, said.He added that a shortage of subject teachers and the lack of additional sections were affecting students.The concern is not new or confined to east Delhi. Overcrowding has repeatedly surfaced in govt schools in northeast Delhi too, where high enrolment and limited classroom capacity have prompted schools to go for double shifts, repurpose libraries and other spaces and, in some cases, stagger attendance.A TOI ground report from northeast Delhi in Sept 2024 found that the pressure was affecting how often some children could attend school.

At the time, DoE figures showed just 48 govt schools catering to 1,32,607 students in the district.According to officials, in 2023, data submitted by the directorate of education to Delhi High Court showed that 14 schools examined in northeast Delhi had 31,251 students and 374 classrooms, with an average student-classroom ratio of 83.5:1. The figures varied sharply, reaching 190 students per classroom at Government Co-ed Middle School, Johripur, while two schools at Sabhapur had ratios of 102:1 and 109:1, officials said.

Little had changed since then.A student of a govt school in Tukhmirpur said, “When I had joined the school in Class XI, I was told at the outset that I would have to attend classes only on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.”Another student of a Khajuri Khas school said: “There are so many students in our school that many times, some have to sit in the library.”An education department official said infrastructure expansion was under way in some of the affected areas.

“Govt is planning pucca school buildings on vacant plots in Nand Nagri, Mandoli, New Usmanpur, Johripur and Geeta Colony, with the five projects estimated to cost around Rs 165 crore. Apart from that, many more school buildings are in the pipeline, which would solve such problems.”The pressure has also intersected with teacher shortages in some schools. In Aug this year, students at a Khajuri Khas govt school alleged that more than 200 students in Classes XI and XII had been affected by the absence of a regular chemistry teacher, with each of the four sections having around 50-55 students.

A teacher was subsequently sent there for three days a week.In his latest representation, Agarwal has sought immediate measures to reduce the student-classroom ratio, arguing that inadequate space and seating were preventing some students from attending regularly. “Every student deserves adequate space and a meaningful Right to Education,” the letter said.