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Enrolment in schools across India fell by 37 lakh in the academic year 2023-24 compared to the previous year, according to UDISE+.
New Delhi: Enrolment in schools across India fell by 37 lakh in the academic year 2023-24 compared to the previous year, according to data released by the Ministry of Education’s Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+).
The total number of enrolled students in 2023-24 stood at 24.80 crore, down from 25.17 crore in 2022-23. Of this, the number of girl students dropped by 16 lakh, while boy students declined by 21 lakh during the period.
Minority representation in total enrolment remained at 20%, with Muslims comprising 79.6%, Christians 10%, Sikhs 6.9%, Buddhists 2.2%, Jains 1.3%, and Parsis 0.1%.
Among caste categories, 26.9% of enrolled students belonged to the general category, 18% to Scheduled Castes, 9.9% to Scheduled Tribes, and 45.2% to Other Backward Classes.
A significant shift in data collection was observed as UDISE+ 2023-24 adopted a student-wise data system, including Aadhaar numbers voluntarily provided by 19.7 crore students. Officials emphasized that this new approach provides a realistic view of the education system, distinguishing it from school-wise consolidated data collected earlier.
“Individual student-wise data reflects a realistic and more accurate picture of the education system, which is being attempted for the first time at the national level, marking a departure from the school-wise consolidated data collected till 2021-22. Hence, the data is not strictly comparable to the previous reports on various educational indicators such as GER, NER, dropout rates, etc.,” a senior official said.
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The new system also aims to identify “ghost students” and ensure that benefits reach deserving candidates, leading to better expenditure management.
Officials highlighted that this would aid in curbing dropouts and tracking student progression, aligning with the goals of the National Education Policy 2020.
The report also revealed disparities in school infrastructure utilization across states. For instance, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Odisha have more schools than required, while states like Telangana, Punjab, and Tamil Nadu show better infrastructure utilization.
