Himachal Pradesh government has ordered the closure of four schools across the state that had zero student enrolment and has downgraded 28 others due to extremely low student strength. Among the downgraded institutions, ten schools recorded no admissions this academic year, while 28 schools had fewer than five students.
The four high schools that have been closed are GHS Nayagraan in Chamba, GHS Hango in Kinnaur, GHS Koot in Shimla, and GHS Pamta in Sirmaur. Meanwhile, the ten schools downgraded due to zero student enrolment include GHS Burwa in Kullu, which has been converted into a middle school. Nine senior secondary schools — Kuthaid and Chhannu (Chamba), Sarahan and Malana (Kullu), Ganol (Solan), Porla (Mandi), Ranol, Dhar Tarapunu, and Rohal (Shimla) — have been downgraded to high schools.
Similarly, 28 schools with fewer than five students have also been downgraded — 12 senior secondary schools with a combined total of just 36 students and 16 high schools with only 68 students. Together, these 28 schools had only 104 students but 134 teaching and non-teaching staff. Shimla district, represented by Education Minister Rohit Thakur, saw the highest number of downgraded institutions — 22 schools in total.
According to the official notification issued by the Directorate of Education on Wednesday, staff from the affected schools will be transferred to nearby institutions.
List of downgraded senior secondary schools converted to high schools:
Bhoura (Kangra), Chambi (Mandi), Kotgarh, Jubbar, Damyana, Bosari, Ratnari, Kadiwan, Jhina, Barach, and Baghal (Shimla), and Barwas (Sirmaur).
List of downgraded high schools converted to middle schools:
Gharna (Kangra), Traswan (Mandi), Malhoti (Sirmaur), and Lingjar, Chanog, Munish, Bral, Alawang, Kuhal, Kanda, Jarashi, Janahan, Gaiha, Kacheri, Nagan, and Gahan (Shimla).
The Education Department stated that the decision aims to rationalize school resources and improve teaching efficiency, as maintaining schools with negligible student strength puts a strain on financial and human resources.
