PRAYAGRAJ, May 9 -- The promotion process for 4,461 assistant teachers working in 2,635 government-run secondary schools across Uttar Pradesh has been stalled for the past four years, reportedly because of administrative negligence and the state machinery's preoccupation with conducting recruitment examinations. The Uttar Pradesh secondary education department has already sent requisitions to the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC) for promotions to 1,821 lecturer posts in the girls' wing and 2,640 posts in the boys' wing. However, affected teachers alleged that despite repeated efforts since 2022, the department has failed to finalise the eligibility list of assistant teachers qualified for promotion. Teachers claim the delay has been further aggravated by the UPPSC's packed recruitment examination schedule, leaving little room for carrying out the departmental promotion procedures required under service rules. The prolonged stalemate has triggered widespread resentment among teachers, many of whom are retiring without receiving their due promotions. The situation has raised serious concerns over the functioning of the secondary education department and the efficiency of the state's promotion mechanism, said Rameshwar Pandey, patron of the Uttar Pradesh Government Teachers Association. The education directorate sought confidential reports of eligible women teachers from joint directors of education on multiple occasions - July 11 and 20, 2023; May 16 and June 10, 2024; and September 30 and December 12, 2025 - for promotions to lecturer posts in the girls' wing. However, against 1,821 vacant posts, only around 70% of the eligibility list has been prepared so far. Consequently, promotions in the girls' wing have remained pending for the past seven years, said Pandey. In the boys' wing, information regarding 297 posts had already been sent earlier, while a fresh requisition for 2,343 additional vacancies was forwarded to the commission on February 27, taking the total number of vacant posts to 2,640, he claimed. Affected teachers further alleged that the education directorate has yet to prepare the eligibility list of assistant teachers for promotions in the boys' wing. When officials from the education department approached the UPPSC to schedule a Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) meeting, the commission reportedly said that dates could not be finalised due to multiple ongoing recruitment examinations. Officials indicated that teachers whose confidential reports have already been completed may receive promotions once the commission finalises the DPC schedule. Under the promotion quota in government secondary schools, 5,409 lecturer posts have been sanctioned - 2,343 in the girls' wing and 3,066 in the boys' wing. However, only 948 posts, or around 18%, are currently filled, while 4,461 posts, accounting for 82%,remain vacant. Though reluctant to comment on the issue, citing that promotions and recruitments fall under the purview of the state government, officials conceded that if the pending promotions are completed, nearly 4,500 assistant teacher posts would become vacant. This could pave the way for a major recruitment drive and create employment opportunities for aspiring candidates....