Enrolment in government schools fell by nearly 86 lakh between 2023-24 and 2025-26 while private unaided recognised schools added more than 88 lakh students during the same period, according to the UDISE 2025-26 report released by the Ministry of Education on 7 July.
UDISE (Unified District Information System for Education Plus) is the Centre’s official digital database for the education sector.
Maintained by the Ministry of Education, it collates real-time statistics on school infrastructure, student enrolment, and teacher metrics.
11.89 cr enrolments in Govt schools 2025-26
The total enrolment from foundational to secondary level stood at 24.72 crore in 2025-26, compared with 24.80 crore in 2023-24 – a decline of about 8.26 lakh.
But enrolment in government schools fell from 12.75 crore to 11.89 crore, while for private unaided recognised schools it rose from 9 crore to 9.89 crore, according to the report.
The number of schools declined marginally from 14.72 lakh to 14.67 lakh, but the teacher base rose from 98.08 lakh to 1.03 crore (1,02,73,020), improving the overall pupil-teacher ratio from 25 to 24. Zero-enrolment schools fell from 12,954 to 5,663, while single-teacher schools declined from 1.11 lakh to 1.01 lakh.
The student dropout rate in schools witnessed a sharp and consistent decline across critical learning stages, according to the report even as the student retention rate declined marginally at the foundation and preparatory levels.
Decline in student dropout rate
“The academic year 2025-26 has seen a notable reduction in dropout rates across preparatory and secondary levels as compared to the previous years – 2022-23, 2023-24, and 2024-25.
“At the preparatory level, the dropout rate declined from 2.3 per cent in 2024-25 to 1.8 per cent in 2025-26, and at the secondary level from 8.2 per cent to 7.0 per cent,” the report said.
“This downward trend highlights improved student retention and reflects the success of initiatives aimed at keeping children engaged in their education.
“The consistent decrease across all levels suggests that schools are becoming more supportive and responsive to students’ needs,” it added.
The academic year 2025-26 has seen a notable reduction in dropout rates across preparatory and secondary levels.
The academic year 2025-26 has shown a positive trend in student retention at the middle and secondary levels, increasing from 82.8 per cent (2024-25) to 83.7 per cent (2025-26) at the middle level and from 47.2 per cent (2024-25) to 51.9 per cent (2025-26) at the secondary level.