A recently surfaced video from a government school in Balrampur district, Chhattisgarh, has triggered widespread concern and public outrage after showing teachers struggling to spell basic English words such as “eleven,” “eighteen,” and “nineteen.”
The video, going viral on social media since July 27, 2025, highlights systemic weaknesses in teacher preparedness despite some teachers earning high salaries of up to ₹70,000 per month. The state educational authorities have acknowledged the issue and vowed to introduce stringent remedial measures, including intensive training programmes and enhanced monitoring to improve teaching quality and accountability.
Viral Footage Sparks an Uproar Over Teacher Competency
The controversial video was recorded during an official inspection visit to a local government school in Balrampur. It depicts teachers visibly struggling to spell out simple English words in front of both officials and students — a situation that has shocked parents, educators, and citizens across India. The footage shows an English teacher misspelling “eleven” as “aivene” and “nineteen” as “ninithin,” revealing severe gaps in basic language skills required even at primary school levels.
Social media users swiftly condemned these shortcomings, questioning not only the recruitment standards but also the monitoring and training processes for government teachers. The public outcry has prompted the Chhattisgarh education department to confirm that a detailed investigation is underway, and several officials have stated that teacher re-training and stricter accountability mechanisms will be priorities going forward.
Although no disciplinary actions have yet been announced against the individual teachers featured in the video, authorities have emphasised their zero-tolerance approach toward such lapses.
Recent Reforms and Continuing Challenges in Chhattisgarh’s Educational Landscape
This incident occurs amid ongoing efforts by the Chhattisgarh government to elevate education standards across the state, particularly in rural sectors. The current academic year saw the launch of the Mukhyamantri Shiksha Gunvatta Abhiyan (Chief Minister’s Education Quality Campaign), which prioritises teacher rationalisation, infrastructure improvements, and the abolition of teacherless schools.
Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai had proudly stated, “Every school will have at least one qualified teacher, and no child’s education will be compromised due to staff shortages.” Through this initiative, thousands of teachers have been deployed or re-assigned to schools in underserved areas, while the government has intensified efforts to engage parents and monitor school functioning regularly.
Despite these encouraging moves, the Balrampur video starkly exposes the remaining gaps, particularly teacher quality and professional capacity-building. Experts note that systemic flaws such as inadequate pre-service training and weak performance evaluation remain stumbling blocks. Many teachers recruited in rural districts face challenges adapting to curriculum updates and modern teaching methods, which calls for sustained upskilling initiatives.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
The Logical Indian views education as foundational to social equity and national progress. While acknowledging the administration’s attempts to rectify infrastructure and staffing shortfalls, we cannot ignore the critical issue of teacher competency highlighted by this viral incident. High salaries lose meaning if educators lack essential skills, undermining children’s learning and future opportunities.
We strongly advocate that government reforms couple infrastructural improvements with comprehensive and continuous teacher training. Transparent performance evaluations and community involvement in school governance can also promote accountability while supporting teachers’ professional growth.
Chattisgarh Govt School teacher can't even spell ELEVEN.
— Dr Ranjan (@DocRGM) July 30, 2025
BJP and Congress have ensured that the Indian masses remain illiterate so that they can manipulate them on trivial issues. pic.twitter.com/KepJHgukOr
