Ludhiana tops merit list numbers, but govt schools lag

Ludhiana: The Class X Punjab School Education Board (PSEB) results have been a dampener in many ways. Only one student from govt schools in Ludhiana has figured in the merit list.

Despite Ludhiana being the worst-performing district in the state in terms of overall pass percentage, it recorded the highest number of merit-list students among all 23 districts of Punjab. A total of 38 students — 27 girls and 11 boys — from the district made it to the merit list.

However, only one of them studied in a state-run school. Lavanya Jain, who secured 628 marks out of 650 and ranked 17th in the merit list, studied at Shaheed Nirmaljit Singh Sekhon Govt School, Roorka Kalan, Ludhiana. The remaining 37 merit-list students were from private schools. This raises serious concerns about the standard of education in govt schools of the district.

The results have prompted district education authorities to review the reasons behind the poor performance of govt schools despite several initiatives and schemes launched by the govt to improve quality of education in state-run schools. Such initiatives include Sikhya Kranti.

While Ludhiana topped the state in terms of the number of students in the merit list, it ranked last in overall results, with a pass percentage of 89.20%. It was the only district in Punjab to record a pass percentage below 90%.

The performance has also put a question mark on the efficacy of the Schools of Eminence, a govt initiative to provide better infrastructure and quality education in govt schools. Ludhiana has around 16 Schools of Eminence, but not a single student from these institutions made it to the merit list. The govt has also provided grants and sponsored foreign exposure visits for school officials to enhance learning outcomes, but the results have not reflected any improvement.

Deputy district education officer (Secondary) Amandeep Singh confirmed that only one govt school student from Ludhiana made it to the merit list this year. “The education department will conduct a review meeting to assess the situation. Officials will examine where changes are required and what steps need to be taken to improve results of students studying in govt schools in the district,” he said.

Despite repeated attempts, district education officer (Secondary) Dimple Madaan was unavailable for comment.