Three government-school teachers from Ludhiana are among 55 teachers selected across the state for the Punjab State Teacher Awards, recognising their contributions to education, innovation and student development. The awards will be presented by chief minister Bhagwant Mann and education minister Harjot Singh Bains on Teachers’ Day in SAS Nagar.
The Ludhiana awardees are Sukhdhir Singh, head teacher of Government Primary School (GPS), Moti Nagar; Sarabjit Singh, economics lecturer at PM SHRI Government Senior Secondary School for Girls, Samrala; and Sukhpal Kaur, Punjabi lecturer at the same school.
Sukhdhir Singh, 51, who joined the education department in 2001 and became a head teacher in 2016, has been heading GPS Moti Nagar since 2020. During his tenure, the school has seen significant improvements in infrastructure and facilities, while its enrollment has risen from around 180 students to 725.
Singh said his focus had been on discipline, academics and providing students with opportunities beyond the classroom. The school has a computer lab where students have individual IDs to attempt level-based questions from home. It also provides training in sports and calligraphy and regularly organises quiz programmes.
The school was also honoured with a Swachhata award by the municipal corporation around two years ago.
{{/usCountry}}The school was also honoured with a Swachhata award by the municipal corporation around two years ago.
{{/usCountry}}Sarabjit Singh, 57, who has been teaching since 1994, joined the Samrala school in 2024 and is due to retire in about 10 months. He said interest in economics had increased significantly among students since he joined the school, with nearly 50 Class 12 students now opting for the subject.
Although the school has interactive panels and projectors, Singh said he continued to rely largely on traditional classroom teaching and verbal lectures. He said eight of his students had scored 85% or above in economics so far.
Sukhpal Kaur, 46, a PhD holder and Punjabi lecturer at the Samrala school, has been recognised for her efforts to promote Punjabi language and literature among students. She is in charge of the Canada-based literary project ‘Naviyaan Kalman, Naviyaan Udaan’, through which students get an opportunity to publish their writings.
Kaur is also a National Service Scheme (NSS) programme officer, and her students have participated in national camps twice. She said her aim was to connect students with literature and encourage them to understand and engage with their language.