Govt report reveals progress in school infrastructure, but digital gaps persist

The Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) 2023-24 report highlights the mixed picture of progress and ongoing issues in India's school infrastructure.

Advanced facilities like working desktop computers, internet access, and ramps with handrails are still few in schools, even though more than 90% of them have basic conveniences like power and gender-specific toilets.

The fact that just 57.2% of schools have working computers, 53.9% have internet, and 52.3% have ramps highlights the serious inequalities in digital preparedness and accessibility.

According to a ministry official, "Student-wise data gives a more accurate picture of the education system," and the new methodology could help explain some of the observed differences.

This method improves the tracking of retention and advancement and differs from the previous school-level aggregated data.

By eliminating duplication and fostering fair resource allocation, the use of distinct educational IDs in conjunction with Aadhaar seeks to expedite beneficiary identification for government programs.

According to the report, total enrollment dropped to 24.8 crore in 2023-24, down from 25.18 crore in 2022-23, marking a 6% decrease.

Differences between educational levels are shown by the Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER). The fundamental level's GER is only 41.5%, whereas the preparatory level boasts a 96.5% GER.

At the middle and secondary levels, the respective percentages are 89.5% and 66.5%. Higher education also sees a significant increase in dropout rates, which go from 5.2% in middle school to 10.9% in secondary school.

Similar trends can be seen in retention rates, which fell from 85.4% at the preparatory level to just 45.6% at the secondary stage.

The situation is made more difficult by differences between states. West Bengal has only 11.6% secondary schools and 79% foundational and preparatory schools, which puts the state at risk for greater dropout rates.

On the other hand, Chandigarh's secondary schools, which make up 75.6% of the total, show a concentration on higher education, yet just 6.1% of them are foundational institutions.

These difficulties are made worse by deficiencies in the infrastructure and problems with teacher deployment.

"Despite efforts under NE, infrastructure gaps hinder our progress toward universal education. Optimizing resources is key to meeting the ambitious targets for 2030," the ministry official said.

Teacher deployment and pupil-teacher ratio (PTR) remain key challenges.

At the secondary level, a number of states surpass the National Education Policy (NEP)-recommended PTR of 30:1, including West Bengal, Bihar, and Jharkhand.

On the other hand, Chandigarh and Delhi have PTRs that are optimal and in line with NEP standards.

Low student-to-school ratios, however, result in underutilized infrastructure in states like Assam, Odisha, and Karnataka.

However, states such as Assam, Odisha, and Karnataka face underutilized infrastructure due to low student-to-school ratios.

NE prioritizes inclusion and equity, while UDISE+ data offers a picture of representation.

Of the total number of students enrolled, 48.1% are girls, 20% are minorities, and 79.6% of these students are Muslim.

According to social category data, OBC students make up 45.2% of the student body, followed by SC students (18%) and ST students (9.9%).

Although the national rate of Aadhaar seeding is 79.4%, states such as Meghalaya (24.1%), Bihar (38.8%), and Manipur (51.8%) lag behind, which may affect the effectiveness of targeted interventions.

"Universal access to education and reducing dropout rates by 2030 is a primary goal of NE and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)," the report states.

While 98.1% of students move from foundational to preparatory levels, only 83.3% move from middle to secondary education, highlighting systemic challenges in retaining students and ensuring smooth educational progression.

The UDISE+ report serves as a call to action for optimizing infrastructure, improving teacher deployment, and addressing disparities in enrollment and retention.

These measures are crucial for realizing NEP's vision of equitable and inclusive education by 2030.

Aadhaar-linked educational IDs enhance dropout tracking and re-enrollment efforts while streamlining governance for programs like Samagra Shiksha and PM POSHAN.