Defying the widely held notion that interest in the teaching profession is waning, Chhattisgarh has witnessed a remarkable expansion in Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) colleges and seats over the past two decades. From just three colleges offering B.Ed courses in the 2001-02 academic session, the number has surged to 136 institutions in 2024-25. Correspondingly, the number of seats has seen a sharp rise of 250 per cent during the same period. This growth is not limited to quantity alone, diversity among applicants is also on the rise. While students from science and arts streams continue to dominate B.Ed enrolments, colleges across State are now attracting candidates with professional degrees such as Bachelor of Engineering (BE), Master of Business Administration (MBA), and Bachelor of Pharmacy (B.Pharm). Fuelling this surge is the recent policy decision by the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), which now permits postgraduate degree holders to pursue a one-year

 

B.Ed program, instead of the usual two-year duration. Colleges expect a further spike in enrolments this academic session as a result. The shift toward teaching is also being driven by job security and stability, which are increasingly valued amid economic uncertainties. “Only in Durg district, around 15 engineers and 10 MBA holders with B.Ed degrees are currently working as lecturers or teachers in government schools,” said Dr. Pushpalata Sharma, an expert in B.Ed and M.Ed courses and former Head of the Education Department at Kalyan Postgraduate College, one of the earliest institutions in Chhattisgarh to offer the B.Ed programme. “Besides attractive salaries, the assurance of job security is a strong motivator for these professionally qualified individuals.” Nisha Pandit, an engineering graduate now serving as a teacher in a government school in Durg, shared her journey: “While pursuing engineering, I started taking private tuitions and realized that teaching, not the corporate or IT sector, was my true calling.” She completed her B.Ed from Kalyan College before entering the government education sector. The data and testimonials suggest that far from declining, the teaching profession in Chhattisgarh is experiencing a quiet but steady resurgence, powered by changing aspirations and supportive policy reforms.