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Emotional competence plays an important role in the teaching profession, particularly at the elementary level where teachers interact closely with young learners and influence their emotional and social development. Teachers with higher emotional competence are better able to understand students' feelings, manage classroom situations effectively, and create a supportive learning environment. The present study was conducted to examine the emotional competence of elementary school teachers in relation to gender and locale. The descriptive survey method was used for the investigation. A sample of 200 elementary school teachers was randomly selected from government elementary schools located in rural and urban areas of Bathinda district, Punjab. The Emotional Competence Scale developed by Dahiya and Gahlawat (2018) was used as the tool for data collection. The scale measures five dimensions of emotional competence: self-awareness, adaptability, motivation, empathy, and social skills. The collected data were analysed using the t-test to determine the significance of differences between groups. The findings of the study revealed that there is a significant difference in emotional competence among elementary school teachers with respect to gender and locale. The results indicated that male teachers scored higher on emotional competence than female teachers. Similarly, urban teachers showed higher emotional competence compared to rural teachers. The study highlights the importance of emotional competence in improving teaching effectiveness and maintaining healthy teacher-student relationships. The findings suggest that training programmes and professional development workshops should be organised to enhance the emotional competence of teachers, especially those working in rural schools. Strengthening teachers' emotional skills can contribute to better classroom management, improved student engagement, and a more positive educational environment.