V. Annamalai, National Secretary of AIFETO (All India Federation of Elementary Teachers’ Organisation) and Senior Leader of the Tamil Nadu Teachers’ Federation, has raised several significant questions regarding the Central Government’s education policy and the drastic reduction of the number of National Best Teacher Awards.
In his statement, he said: “According to the policy decisions of the National Education Policy 2020, the schools of the country are being minimised under the guise of ‘School Mergers’. Since the period of India’s Independence until Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office for the second time, each year 378 teachers were chosen for the National Best Teacher Award.
But surprisingly, in 2025, just 45 teachers were chosen by the Union Ministry of Education. This action has raised serious concern throughout the teaching fraternity. The awards will be given by the Hon’ble President of India on September 5th, the birth anniversary of former President and great teacher Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, in New Delhi. ₹50,000 cash, a silver medal, and a certificate of merit will be awarded to each awardee.
Only two teachers have been chosen this year from Tamil Nadu:
1. Mrs. Revathi Parameswaran – Principal, P.S. Senior Secondary School, Mylapore, Chennai. She has 34 years of experience as a Mathematics teacher and 8 years of experience as a Principal.
2. Mrs. V. Vijayalakshmi – Geography Teacher, Bharathiar Centenary Government Girls’ Higher Secondary School, Tiruppur.
We express our warm congratulations and admiration to both winners.
But he condemned drastically reduced numbers: For 2025, there are just five primary school teachers chosen across the country – a single one from Manipur, one from West Bengal, Bihar, Gujarat, and Punjab. In the Congress regime until PM Modi took over, Tamil Nadu alone got 25 awards every year – 17 to primary school teachers and 8 to secondary/higher secondary school teachers. Now, they are choosing just one or two.
At a national level, the 378 awards given every year earlier have been cut to just 45. In a nation of 4.5 lakh teachers, it is effectively one award per lakh teacher. What is the rationale behind such a heavy cut? Is it an anti-award policy? An anti-Tamil Nadu policy? Or an anti-bilingual move?
This Central Government’s move to cut down awards named after Dr. Radhakrishnan — a great teacher who went up to the top of the Constitutional hierarchy as President of India — is reprehensible. Prime Minister Modi, who holds the unique honour of hoisting the National Flag for the 12th time as PM, should see to it that in 2026, the very first 378 awards are reinstated, with Tamil Nadu getting back its rightful share of 25 seats.
He also appealed:
The Central Government has to behave not as an education-phobic, state-phobic regime, but as a true federal government equal in its treatment towards all states. In the name of AIFETO and the Tamil Nadu teaching community, we very urgently appeal to the Hon’ble Prime Minister and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to review this retrograde step.
Regarding the question of budgetary allocation, he noted:
Even now, education expenditure has not exceeded 4% of the GDP. Further, Tamil Nadu’s legitimate shares of ₹2,152 crore are still held back. Can the educational interest of students be sacrificed in such a way? If the Central Government does not alter its approach, teachers, students, and the public in general will collectively register their protest in the coming elections. This way ended the stern declaration made by V. Annamalai, National Secretary of AIFETO and Senior Teacher’s Federation Leader.
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