Lucknow, July 3: The Uttar Pradesh Education Service Selection Commission is conducting the Uttar Pradesh Teacher Eligibility Test (UPTET) 2026 from July 2 to July 4. In a significant move, the Uttar Pradesh government has decided to hold the TET for currently employed teachers, who will also receive leave from their schools to take the exam.
This examination will be held twice a year, with a two-year window for candidates to pass. Failure to do so will result in job loss, regardless of the teacher’s age, which could be as high as 40-45 years.
Currently, 1.85 lakh teachers are participating in the UPTET to secure their positions. A Supreme Court ruling on September 1, 2025, mandated that even those who became primary teachers without passing the TET must now clear the examination to retain their jobs.
Despite protests from teachers and appeals to the Prime Minister and Parliament for amendments to this law, the Supreme Court’s decision remains unchallenged.
Tragically, the pressure of this situation has led to the deaths of two teachers, highlighting the intense stress faced by educators who have been teaching for 20 to 25 years. Teacher unions argue that it is unreasonable to require them to retake an exam after so many years of service.
For the UPTET 2026, a total of 1,85,791 candidates are already working as teachers in basic schools, while 18,08,870 new candidates are expected to take the exam. This year, the test will be conducted across 955 centers in 60 districts, with a total of nearly 19,94,661 candidates participating.
In Pratapgarh, heavy traffic jams caused significant delays for candidates and their parents, some of whom were stuck for over an hour trying to reach their exam centers.
According to Sanjay Singh, Deputy Secretary of the Uttar Pradesh Education Service Selection Commission, Varanasi has the highest number of exam centers, with 68 set up for 1,27,239 candidates. Prayagraj has 53 centers for 76,634 candidates, and Lucknow has 45 centers for 76,720 candidates.
To ensure a fair and transparent examination process, observers, including retired IAS and IPS officers, have been deployed in every district. Multi-layer security and biometric iris scans will be implemented at exam centers, with live monitoring via CCTV feeds. The STF will also be present to curb cheating.
This UPTET exam marks the first occurrence in over four and a half years, with the last one held in 2022 after a paper leak in 2021 delayed the process.