Chandigarh (Gurpreet Singh): Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab Prabhari Manish Sisodia on Thursday challenged Congress leader Sachin Pilot to jointly audit government schools in Punjab and Himachal Pradesh. The AAP Punjab Prabhari said that while AAP could readily showcase 1,000 government schools in Punjab that had undergone a visible transformation, Sachin Pilot should demonstrate whether Himachal Pradesh could present 1,000 schools of a similar standard.
Responding to Sachin Pilot, AAP Punjab Prabhari and former Delhi Education Minister Manish Sisodia stated, “Sachin ji, we can show you 1,000 brilliant schools in Punjab. Can you show us 1,000 such schools in Himachal Pradesh?”
He stated, “Let’s audit the government schools of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh together. Tell us. Do you accept the challenge?”
Bhagwant Mann Govt’s Education Model Delivers National Rankings, Better Schools And JEE/NEET Toppers
Punjab’s government schools under the Bhagwant Mann government have topped the country in the Performance Grading Index (PGI) 2.0, while the NITI Aayog report released in May ranked the state No. 1 in classroom learning outcomes. Punjab also emerged as the top-performing state in education in the PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024, while the Ministry of Education’s Project Approval Board has repeatedly appreciated the state’s work in school infrastructure and learning outcomes.
The transformation is also visible at the school level. Government schools that previously lacked basic facilities have been upgraded with smart interactive panels, functional toilets, sanitary pad incinerators, clean drinking water and Wi-Fi connectivity. At Jallah Government School in Fatehgarh Sahib, for instance, a video from 2018 was circulated as though it showed the school’s current condition, despite the school now having two smart interactive panels, two functional girls’ toilets, a working sanitary pad incinerator, clean drinking water and Wi-Fi.
Punjab’s government-school students are also producing results in national-level competitive examinations. As many as 882 students from government schools cracked UG-NEET 2026, reflecting the improvement in learning outcomes and academic opportunities being created across the state’s public education system.
The progress is further reflected in independent assessments. Patiala, which ranks 23rd among Punjab’s districts, scored higher in the education-related assessment being cited than Gurugram, which ranks first among Haryana’s districts. The comparison highlights the scale of improvement across Punjab’s government-school system rather than the performance of only a handful of individual institutions.
The Bhagwant Mann government has also undertaken large-scale monitoring and corrective work across the state. More than 2,000 government schools have been personally inspected by the Education Minister, with deficiencies identified during these inspections followed by corrective action.
