According to the Ministry of Education's UDISE Plus data, India saw a decline in school enrollment by 37 lakh in the 2023-24 academic year, dropping from 25.17 crore in 2022-23 to 24.80 crore. The number of enrolled girl students decreased by 16 lakh, while boy students fell by 21 lakh. The report highlighted that 79.6% of minority students were Muslim, followed by smaller representations of other groups such as Christians and Sikhs.
The data also revealed that 26.9% of students were from the general category, 18% from Scheduled Castes, 9.9% from Scheduled Tribes, and 45.2% from Other Backward Classes. UDISE Plus aimed to gather student-specific data, including Aadhaar numbers, for better management and to track student movement accurately, marking a departure from previous years when data was collected on a school-wise basis. Over 19.7 crore students provided their Aadhaar details.
This data will assist in identifying 'ghost students' and ensure that benefits reach deserving students. The shift to individual data will help track dropout rates and the retention of students, crucial to the National Education Policy's goal of ensuring universal education by 2030. Additionally, the report showed that some states, like Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, have underutilised school infrastructure, while states like Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra demonstrate better use of available resources.