UP Board orders statewide crackdown on illegally running secondary schools

UP Board secretary Dibyakant Shukla sent a missive to all district inspectors of schools (DIoSs) on July 15 instructing them to initiate action as per law against all such institutions

Uttar Pradesh Madhyamik Shiksha Parishad (UPMSP) aka UP Board has ordered a crackdown on secondary schools running sans permission or admitting students in classes or streams of study for which they do not have the permission from the board across all 75 districts of the state.

Prayagraj-based UP Board headquarters. (HT file)

UP Board secretary Dibyakant Shukla sent a missive to all district inspectors of schools (DIoSs) on Saturday instructing them to initiate action as per law against all such institutions.

The UP Secondary Education Act, 1921, provides that only after getting recognition from the UP Board can the institutions take admission of students and that too only in classes or streams for which they have the due recognition, says the missive, a copy of which is with HT.

“So, the DIoSs have been asked to ensure that no unrecognised school is running in their respective districts. If such schools are found running, legal action should be initiated against them besides ensuring their immediate closure,” said the UP Board secretary while confirming the move.

“The DIoSs have also been asked to conduct surprise inspections of all the schools in their districts and ensure that only eligible students are admitted to all the recognised institutions from classes 9 and 12 and that too only in streams and classes for which particular institutions have been granted permission,” Shukla added.

UP Board officials point out that information about recognised schools running across the state is available on the official website of the UP Board— https://upmsp.edu.in/.

“Parents can get correct and updated information regarding any recognised government, government-aided or private schools of any district of the state from the official website of UP Board by accessing the Pehchan portal link before getting admission of their children,” officials said.

During 2023 edition of its high school and intermediate examinations, UP Board had 27,601 recognised schools across the state. They included 2,355 government schools, 4,509 government-aided schools and 20,737 private schools.