Punjab terminates 253 Master Cadre teachers after court-ordered merit revision

Punjab's School Education Department has ended the services of 253 teachers who were hired through the state's recruitment for 4,161 Master Cadre posts, after a revision of the subject-wise merit lists under a Punjab and Haryana High Court order. In its order dated Wednesday, October 28, 2026, the Directorate of School Education (Secondary) said it had considered the teachers' replies, heard them in person and examined official records before deciding. The terminations take effect 10 days after the teachers receive the orders through their school heads. Teachers' unions have opposed the move and are protesting.

The order affects classrooms as well as the 253 teachers and their families, because these are serving teachers in the state's government schools. The teachers have been in service for some time: they were selected through an exam held in 2022 and appointed after the results. Losing their jobs now, after the merit lists were recast, leaves them without work, and leaves schools with posts to fill in the middle of the academic year.

The case turns on the answer key, the official list of correct answers used to mark the exam. Objections to the key led to court proceedings, and a committee of subject experts from three Punjab universities reviewed the objections. When the marks were recalculated and the merit lists revised, these 253 candidates fell below the cut-off, according to reports. The department says it followed the High Court's directions, including giving each teacher a chance to reply and a personal hearing before the final order.

Teachers' unions see it differently. They argue that the teachers did nothing wrong and are being made to pay for errors in the recruitment process, and one union leader called the day of the order a "black day". The Democratic Teachers' Front and other groups have asked the government to withdraw the terminations and have warned of wider protests.

For other candidates in the same recruitment, the revised merit lists may change who is entitled to a post. The reports do not say whether candidates who now rank higher will be offered the vacated posts, or when.

Short-term: The 253 teachers have 10 days from receiving the order before it takes effect. They may seek further legal remedies; reports have not confirmed any new appeal. Schools that lose teachers will need to rearrange classes.

Long-term: How the posts are refilled, and whether candidates who now rank higher are appointed, will decide how quickly students get subject teachers back.

Who is affected: The 253 teachers and their families, students in the schools where they teach, other candidates in the 4,161 Master Cadre recruitment, and Punjab's School Education Department.

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