Education | The Indian Express
A sharp decline in school enrollments across India, particularly at the elementary level, was reported in government data presented in Parliament on Thursday. According to figures shared in the Lok Sabha by Union Minister of State for Tribal Affairs Durgadas Uikey, the gross enrollment ratio (GER) of tribal students at the elementary level saw a worrying drop from 103.4 per cent in 2021-22 to 97.1 per cent in 2023-24.
The GER for students across all communities also registered a significant fall, declining from 100.13 per cent in 2021-22 to 91.7 per cent in 2023-24.
The declining trend was evident at higher levels of schooling as well. At the secondary level (classes 9-10), the GER of tribal students fell from 78.1 per cent in 2021-22 to 76.9 per cent in 2023-24, while for students from all communities, the figure dropped from 79.56 per cent to 77.4 per cent in the same period.
The situation appeared more concerning at the senior secondary level (classes 11-12), where the GER for tribal students declined from 52 per cent in 2021-22 to 48.7 per cent in 2023-24, while the overall GER for students of all backgrounds dropped from 57.56 per cent to 56.2 per cent.
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari raised concerns over the “significant decline” in school enrolments. Speaking in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday, Tiwari referred to a report from the United District Information System for Education (UDISE), a database managed by the Union Education Ministry for hyperlocal tracking of Education related information, which highlighted an unprecedented drop in school enrollments. Accusing the Narendra Modi government of failing to prioritise education, he alleged that economic disparity and financial mismanagement were driving the downward trend.
The report also pointed to underutilised classrooms in states such as Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Assam, alongside concerns over inadequate infrastructure and excessive student load in states like Telangana, West Bengal, and Punjab. Tiwari called for urgent government intervention to address these structural deficiencies and ensure that declining enrollment rates do not further impact students’ futures.
(With inputs from PTI)
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