Punjab approves recruitment of school-teacher interns
The Punjab cabinet has green-lit the recruitment of “School Teacher Interns” in government schools across the province to bolster staffing and support education delivery.
The Punjab cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, has approved the recruitment of School Teacher Interns (STIs) for government schools across the province, according to an official announcement.
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The cabinet took a decision during a meeting held in Lahore. It also approved a range of other measures including the Punjab Protection of Ownership of Immovable Property Ordinance 2025 and a subsidy scheme under the Chief Minister’s High-Tech Farm Mechanization Finance Programme.
Officials said the internship scheme seeks to address persistent teacher‐shortages in public schools. It will complement other recruitment drives by the provincial government. Earlier in the year, the government had proposed hiring 23,000 STIs across some 2,000 upgraded schools.
Another earlier announcement pointed to recruitment of 25,000 STIs, of which 12,500 had already been engaged and 12,500 more lined up.
The detailed terms of the STI programme such as intern duration, stipend and selection criteria have not yet been fully disclosed.
The prior scheme for college teaching interns in the province set a precedent as a seven-month or ten-month internship, with monthly stipends of Rs 50,000 and Rs 60,000 depending on institution level.
Education analysts say the move is part of the government’s broader effort to strengthen human-resource capacity in the education sector ahead of the 2025-26 academic session.
They caution, however, that without concurrent investments in teacher training, infrastructure and retention mechanisms, the internship alone may not resolve deeper structural issues.
In approving the STIs recruitment, the Punjab cabinet reaffirmed its commitment to improving public-school performance, reducing teacher absences, and enhancing learning outcomes across the province.
The implementation timeline, district‐wise quotas and application rollout are expected to be announced by the provincial education department in the coming weeks.
