Government School Closures in India Latest News
- A recent NITI Aayog report highlights that around 94,000 government schools have been closed over the last decadeāan average of 25 schools per day.Ā
- During the same period, government school enrolment declined by 2.26 crore students, with their share in total enrolment falling from 71% (2005) to 49.24% (2024-25).
- The trend has raised concerns over educational access, social equity and compliance with the Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009.
Key Initiatives Related to Education in India
- NEP 2020:
- It replaces the older 1986 policy with a comprehensive framework for education from age 3 to higher education.
- It introduces the 5+3+3+4 curricular and pedagogical school structure, and extends the focus to early childhood care and education (ECCE).
- Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009:
- Enacted on August 4, 2009, it guarantees free and compulsory elementary education for children aged 6 to 14 under Article 21A.
- It mandates 25% reservation for disadvantaged groups in private schools.
- Prohibits physical punishment, detention, and screening procedures during admission.
- UDISE+ (Unified District Information System for Education Plus):
- Launched in 2018-2019 by the Ministry of Education as a real-time online management information system.
- It collects comprehensive data on school infrastructure, teacher profiles, and student enrollment.
- Tracks parameters across government and private schools to measure progress and policy execution.
Extent and Reasons for School Closures
- Rationalisation under NEP 2020:
- Most closures are justified by States as school rationalisation, aimed at consolidating institutions with low enrolment.
- While the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 supports rationalisation, it explicitly states that the principle of neighbourhood schools should not be compromised.
- The scale of closures suggests an administrative policy decision rather than merely demographic changes or urban migration.
- National trend:
- According to UDISE+, government schools declined from 11.07 lakh (2014-15) to 10.17 lakh (2023-24).
- During the same period, private schools increased from 2.88 lakh to 3.31 lakh, indicating a gradual shift towards private schooling.
States Most Affected
- Madhya Pradesh:
- Identified 7.37 lakh children without school records.
- 11.38 lakh children are classified under the "Drop Box" category (at risk of dropping out).Ā
- 1.23 lakh children are already dropouts.
- 1.55 lakh children discontinued education due to migration or displacement.
- Over 3,500 government schools reported zero new admissions, while 6,500 schools admitted fewer than ten students.
- Government outreach initiatives such as School Chalen Hum and the Home Contact Campaign failed to reach nearly 7.5 lakh children, according to the State's own audit.
- Uttar Pradesh: Government schools declined from 1.63 lakh to 1.38 lakh within a year (2018-19 to 2019-20), reflecting one of the largest reductions.
- Jammu & Kashmir:
- More than 4,300 schools were merged or closed under rationalisation.
- School numbers reduced from 23,167 (2020-21) to 18,785 (2022-23).
- Many children now travel 4ā6 km daily, undermining the neighbourhood school principle under the RTE Act.
- Around 13,000 teaching posts remain vacant, aggravating learning deficits.
Impact of Government School Closures
- Educational inequality:
- Government schools primarily serve economically weaker sections, including Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and other disadvantaged communities.
- Closure of nearby schools disproportionately affects children who lack access to private education or transportation.
- Rise in dropouts:
- Increased travel distances and reduced accessibility contribute to higher dropout rates, especially in rural and tribal regions.
- Migration, displacement and poverty further weaken educational continuity.
- Gender impact: Girls are more vulnerable, as families are more likely to withdraw them from education when schools become distant due to safety and mobility concerns.
- Decline in educational quality:
- Consolidated schools often face teacher shortages, with single teachers handling multiple classes simultaneously.
- Such arrangements violate RTE norms on pupil-teacher ratio and compromise personalised learning.
- Marginalisation of vulnerable communities: Earlier National Sample Survey (2019) analyses indicate declining access to free education for Muslim, SC and ST households, widening existing educational inequalities.
Governance and Accountability Issues
- Role of States: Since education is in the Concurrent List, States administer schools and implement rationalisation policies.
- Role of the Union Government:
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- The RTE Act, 2009 is a Central legislation guaranteeing free and compulsory education for children aged 6ā14 years.
- The Centre also influences State education through the -
- Conditional funding linked to NEP implementation.Ā
- National policy directives, including language-related reforms.
- Therefore, responsibility for ensuring equitable school access is shared by both the Centre and States.
Limitations of the Right to Education (RTE) Framework
- RTE guarantees access but provides limited enforceable provisions regarding quality of education.
- Poor and rural parents often lack the legal or institutional capacity to enforce their children's educational rights.
- School Management Committees (SMCs), intended to ensure community participation and accountability, remain weak and often inactive.
- Consequently, the effective implementation of RTE remains limited despite statutory guarantees.
Way Forward
- School rationalisation should prioritise educational access, equity and learning outcomes rather than administrative efficiency alone.Ā
- Strengthening neighbourhood schools, filling teacher vacancies, revitalising SMCs, improving monitoring of out-of-school children and ensuring cooperative Centre-State action.
- These steps are essential to uphold the constitutional vision of universal, inclusive and quality education.
Source: TH
Government School Closures in India FAQs
Q1: How has large-scale government school rationalisation affected educational equity in India?
Ans: It has reduced access to neighbourhood schools, disproportionately affecting poor, rural, SC/ST, OBC and girl students.
Q2: Why is the closure of government schools considered inconsistent with the objectives of the RTE Act?
Ans: It undermines the guarantee of accessible neighbourhood schools and weakens universal access to free and compulsory education.
Q3: What are the major limitations of the RTE Act in ensuring quality education?
Ans: The Act focuses primarily on access, and has weak enforceability regarding quality standards.
Q4: What are the respective roles of the Centre and States in addressing the decline of government schools?
Ans: While States administer school education under the Concurrent List, the Centre shares responsibility through the RTE Act, etc.
Q5: What measures are needed to balance school rationalisation with inclusive education objectives?
Ans: Preserve neighbourhood schools, fill teacher vacancies, strengthen SMCs, track out-of-school children, etc.
