New Delhi, Sept 5: The Delhi government on Saturday felicitated 118 teachers and principals with state awards on Teachers' Day, with Chief Minister Rekha Gupta saying the government is working to improve education by addressing gaps in school infrastructure as well as curriculum.
Addressing the Shikshak Mahakumbh - State Teachers Awards 2026 at Thyagaraj Stadium, Gupta said the government aims to take education to "great heights" and make significant progress, but the process had to begin by addressing basic facilities in schools.
"We want to take education to great heights and make a lot of progress, but the previous governments did not do anything in 12 years. So, after coming to power, we have had to start working from a very low level," she said.
Gupta said the government was working on repairing toilets, ensuring water facilities, maintenance, whitewashing and other repair works in schools.
"Many schools had very poor toilet facilities. Once, I went for an inspection to a very good and reputed school, which the previous government used to boast about. When I saw it, there was no gate in the toilet. How would our girl students have been using it?" she said.
Apart from infrastructure, the government is also working on courses and curriculum, Gupta said, adding that the Education Department and Education Minister Ashish Sood were continuously working on these issues and progress was being made.
The chief minister said teachers were the strong foundation of society and did not merely impart textbook knowledge, but also instilled values, skills, confidence, a sense of duty and the right direction in students.
She said the Delhi government was committed to ensuring quality education for every child and had allocated Rs 19,148 crore for education in the 2026-27 financial year.
Gupta said 170 modern language labs were being established in schools to strengthen students' language and communication skills. Of these, 70 would be in CM Shri Schools and 100 in other government schools.
Initiatives such as Neev, Rashtraneeti and NIPUN Sankalp were also being used to strengthen entrepreneurship, innovation, problem-solving, democratic values and foundational literacy and numeracy among students, she said.
The chief minister said lasting solutions to Delhi's problems required collective efforts and called upon teachers to instil values such as cleanliness, environmental protection, discipline, sensitivity, compliance with rules and helping those in need.
She also highlighted the importance of awareness about "good touch and bad touch" to ensure children's safety, saying students were the heritage of society and their safety, education and future were a shared responsibility.
Referring to the government's resolve to make Delhi free of begging, Gupta said the first step was to ensure that no child was deprived of education.
She appealed to teachers, institutions and citizens to help bring children found out of school back into the education system.
Gupta said the country's youth would play an important role in realising the resolve of "Viksit Bharat 2047" and that the process of making young people capable, skilled and responsible begins in schools and with teachers.
She expressed confidence that with the support of teachers and continued government efforts, the resolve of "Viksit Delhi", along with "Viksit Bharat", would gain further strength.
Education Minister Ashish Sood said the tireless efforts and dedication of thousands of teachers had played an important role in strengthening Delhi's education system.
The objective of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 was not merely to bring children to school but to prepare them with better learning, understanding and capabilities, he said, adding that the Delhi government had taken significant steps towards implementing the policy.
Sood said the recruitment process for 10,417 teachers had been initiated to address the shortage of teachers. Provisions had also been made for the recruitment of 613 special teachers to provide better educational support to students with special needs.
The minister said the government was working not only on the academic needs of teachers but also on administrative, HR and personal development issues.
Necessary directions had been issued to resolve duty-related and other service-related issues concerning guest teachers.
He expressed confidence that under the leadership of the chief minister, the government would make concrete progress towards resolving most HR-related issues concerning teachers by next year.
A total of 118 teachers were honoured in different categories, including 20 heads of schools, 69 teachers from Directorate of Education and MCD schools, and teachers from three CM Shri Schools. Librarians, special educators and sports teachers, among others, were also recognised for their contributions, according to a statement.
NCC cadets presented a guard of honour to the chief minister at the programme, followed by a welcome song by music teachers. Children dressed in traditional attire also welcomed the guests, it said.
Gupta said the awards were not merely recognition of teachers' achievements but also of their dedication, patience and faith through which they shape the future of children every day.
