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The UDISE+ report for 2023-24, released by the Ministry of Education, presents key insights into India’s school education system. UDISE+ serves as a comprehensive database, tracking student enrolment, school infrastructure, and other educational parameters, enabling efficient policy implementation and gap identification.

Key Findings:

• Decline in School Enrolment: Enrolment figures in Indian schools have witnessed a significant decline for the first time in recent years. The total enrolment dropped from 26.36 crore (2018-22 average) to 25.17 crore in 2022-23 and further to 24.8 crore in 2023-24, marking a fall of 1.55 crore students or nearly 6%. This drop is attributed to the improved data collection methods which helped eliminate duplicate entries, especially students enrolled in both government and private schools.
• Gender and School Type-wise Trends: The enrolment drop was observed across both government and private schools. Government schools saw a decline of 5.59%, whereas private schools experienced a 3.67% reduction. Gender-wise, the enrolment of boys decreased by 6.04%, while girls’ enrolment dropped by 5.76%, compared to the 2018-22 average.
• State-wise Data: The enrolment drop was not uniform across states. Bihar recorded the largest decline, with a loss of 35.65 lakh students, followed by Uttar Pradesh (28.26 lakh) and Maharashtra (18.55 lakh). In contrast, states like Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir, and Telangana saw an increase in enrolment during the same period.
• Level-wise Trends: The most significant declines were recorded at the primary (Classes 1-5), upper primary (Classes 6-8), and secondary (Classes 9-10) levels. However, enrolment in pre-primary and higher secondary (Classes 11-12) levels showed an increase in 2023-24 compared to the previous average.
• Impact of Data Refinement: The implementation of Aadhaar-linked student data collection has enhanced the accuracy of enrolment figures. The de-duplication process helped remove cases of students being enrolled in both government and private schools. This revision is expected to provide more accurate data for targeted educational schemes and improve the effectiveness of government programs like Samagra Shiksha and PM POSHAN.

Challenges in Education

Despite the improvements in data collection, several systemic issues persist:

• Access and Retention: High dropout rates, especially at the secondary level, remain a challenge for sustained student retention.
• Disparities among Marginalized Groups: Enrolment among SC, ST, OBC, and minority communities showed a notable decline, reflecting existing inequities in the education system.
• Infrastructure and Teacher Training: Uneven distribution of resources and insufficient teacher training continue to hamper educational outcomes, affecting quality and student engagement.

Way Forward

To address these challenges, the following steps are critical:

• Strengthening NEP 2020: The National Education Policy aims for universal Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) by 2030, with a focus on skill-based learning and inclusive education.
• Teacher Capacity Building: There is a need for targeted interventions to improve teacher quality and address gaps in the student-teacher ratio.
• Infrastructure Optimization: Schools should optimize their resources based on enrolment trends to improve access and address disparities.
• Data-Driven Monitoring: Continuous monitoring using student-specific data will help identify dropouts and allocate resources efficiently.