Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Wednesday distributed 954 compassionate appointment letters to eligible candidates in the School Education Department and announced that 20,000 new appointments would be made in the department.The Chief Minister symbolically handed over appointment letters to 11 candidates at the programme held at Ravindra Bhawan in Bhopal and also felicitated officers and employees of the department for their outstanding work by presenting them with commendation certificates.Speaking to reporters after the event, CM Yadav said, “A programme to distribute 954 compassionate appointments to eligible candidates by the School Education Department has been held today. Providing such a large number of appointments by a single department is an excellent example of seriousness, promptness and sensitivity in resolving compassionate appointment cases.”The Chief Minister said around 300 cases were still pending and expressed confidence that these would be resolved by the end of the year as promotions create vacancies in the department.Highlighting the government’s focus on school education, the Chief Minister said, “Our government is working with the highest priority on school education. Along with the inauguration of buildings for 369 Sandipschools, we have approved 200 new Sandipani school buildings today. The Tribal Affairs Department is also going to build 200 such Sandipani school buildings,” he said.CM Yadav also stressed that 15,000 appointments had already been completed in the department as part of the recruitment undertaken by the government across various departments and announced to initiate further fresh recruitment drives.“Among the appointments made so far across various departments, 15,000 have been completed in the School Education Department. We are also going to launch a fresh recruitment drive for 20,000 posts in the School Education Department,” the CM said.Meanwhile, the Chief Minister also targeted the Congress party, claiming the budget for School Education was less than Rs 400 crore in their time, but his government increased the budget to Rs 38,000 crore.“During the Congress government, the budget for School Education was less than Rs 400 crore. Our government has allocated a budget of Rs 38,000 crore for School Education. This is not merely an allocation of funds; it reflects our priorities and the way we work. In the School Education Department, we have distributed more than 1.45 lakh laptops to students who scored above 70 per cent marks,” said CM Yadav.He further added that the government was providing assistance ranging from scooty to books, notebooks and uniforms to support students in their education.“Today, Sandipani schools have become several times better than those of private schools. We are all ready to do everything possible for our younger generation. Let us work together, under the leadership of the Prime Minister, to take the state forward towards becoming number one,” he added.