Chandigarh, September 11, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab in-charge Manish Sisodia on Thursday challenged Congress leader Sachin Pilot to jointly audit government schools in Punjab and Himachal Pradesh, asking him to demonstrate whether Himachal could showcase 1,000 schools comparable to those that the AAP-led Punjab government has transformed.
Responding to Pilot, Sisodia said, “Sachin ji, we can show you 1,000 brilliant schools in Punjab. Can you show us 1,000 such schools in Himachal Pradesh?”
He proposed a joint assessment of government schools in both states and asked Pilot to accept the challenge.
“Let’s audit the government schools of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh together. Tell us. Do you accept the challenge?” Sisodia said.
The AAP leader highlighted Punjab’s performance in education rankings and competitive examinations, citing the state’s top position in the Performance Grading Index (PGI) 2.0 and its No. 1 ranking in classroom learning outcomes in the NITI Aayog report released in May.
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 on school infrastructure and learning outcomes, Sisodia said.
He said the transformation was visible at the individual school level, with government schools receiving smart interactive panels, functional toilets, sanitary pad incinerators, clean drinking water and Wi-Fi connectivity.
Citing Jallah Government School in Fatehgarh Sahib, Sisodia said an old video from 2018 had recently been circulated as if it represented the school’s present condition. He claimed the school now has two smart interactive panels, two functional girls’ toilets, a working sanitary pad incinerator, clean drinking water and Wi-Fi.
Academic performance, he said, had also improved, with 882 students from Punjab government schools qualifying in UG-NEET 2026.
Sisodia further cited district-level assessments, saying Patiala, which ranks 23rd among Punjab’s districts, scored higher in the education-related assessment being referenced than Gurugram, ranked first among Haryana’s districts.
He added that more than 2,000 government schools had been personally inspected by the Education Minister, with deficiencies identified during inspections followed by corrective action.
FOLLOW NOW
