Teachers question how can they force students or their parents to get their wards registered when they are not willing to do so
18 September, 2026 – Ludhiana : Kheda Vatan Punjab Diyan sport events, which are being organised by the state government across Punjab, have become a major “headache” for teachers in government schools.
The reason is that school principals, in-charges and teachers are being put under tremendous pressure by their respective Block Primary Education Officers (BPEOs), Sub Divisional Magistrates (SDMs) and sports officers in the district to register maximum number of students for participation on the online portal.
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Targets have been given to teachers and they have been asked to take registers home to continue the registration process, whether the students actually take part in the events or not.
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Ironically, the teachers are being asked to continue the process even when the sports events at the block levels have finished. The teachers are confused as they do not know the details of the follow-up events. Many teachers are not even aware of the games that are to be played at the district level.
One of the teachers working at a government school in Jagraon Block said, “A three-day sports event at the block level was held in Jagraon, which concluded on September 11, but we are still getting text messages on WhatsApp groups to continue with the registration process. We are clueless about what is being done and which sports the students would be playing at the district level. How can students play at the district level when they have not participated at the block level? And, if separate games are added at the district level, we should be made aware of it. Another question is about participation in a particular sport, how would this be justified when students have not been placed under a particular sport earlier?” asked the teacher.
Teachers are being asked to register over 80 per cent students from senior secondary schools. In WhatsApp groups, a target of registration of 10,000 students has been given to teachers from the district as the authorities want to show maximum participation from the biggest district of Punjab.
“How can we force the students and parents to get the wards registered when they are not willing to take part in the activities because of various reasons?” questioned another teacher.
There are also reports that the department registered some students at the block level, and they were taken for the particular sport event. A team was announced winner as no other team had come for a particular competition, said the teacher.
Teachers alleged it was a “mere political stunt” of the state government to show that the energy of youth is being channelised in sports.
What the Sports Officer says:
The District Sports Officer (DSO), Mandeep Kaushal, said if students would not come forward for these games, who else would. “There were just seven games at the block level and 28 games at the district level, for which players are needed. We want maximum students to take part in these games to make it successful,” he said.
The “Khedan vatan Punjab Diyan” campaign was inaugurated by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann at Bathinda on September 6. These are to be played at the block level, district level and state level.
There are different kinds of sports, including athletics, gatka, hockey, kho-kho, judo, volley-ball, badminton etc, which are being played under this campaign.
The Tribune