Since April 18, 58% of Chandigarh's government school teachers have been absent due to training for the Census 2027, which will begin on May 1. Out of approximately 37,000 teachers, 2,700 have been assigned as supervisors and enumerators, undergoing a three-day training program in 60 batches. Schools have had to adapt by deploying contractual staff and merging classes, which has led to concerns about the quality of education. Teachers are also expected to conduct Census duties after school hours, creating additional strain on their schedules. The education department has issued show-cause notices to 59 teachers who missed training sessions. Critics, including Jatinder Grover from Panjab University, argue that this practice contradicts the National Education Policy-2020, which discourages assigning non-academic duties to teachers. The academic performance of government schools has suffered, highlighted by a significant drop in Class 10 pass rates, with the lowest at 26.92% this year, down from 70% last year.