Why are government schools shutting down? | Explained
A significant number of government schools in India have closed over the last decade, leading to a decline in enrollment and a rise in the number of unmapped or dropout students. The report highlights administrative 'rationalization' as a primary driver, particularly affecting rural and impoverished communities.
Why it matters
It raises critical concerns about the accessibility of public education and the potential long-term impact on literacy and social mobility for marginalized children.
A recent NITI Aayog report said some 94,000 government schools were closed over the past decade, an average of 25 a day, contributing to a 2.26 crore decline in government school enrolment. The government schools’ share of total enrolment has fallen from 71% in 2005 to 49.24% in 2024-25.
School closures are happening across States on the grounds of rationalisation. The National Education Policy 2020 advocates such rationalisation but without endangering the concept of neighbourhood schools.
School closure numbers cannot be explained away as gradual demographic drift, urban migration and so on. Rather, it is a coordinated administrative decision taken in states where the poorest and most rural children have the least capacity to compensate for a school that has vanished.
Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir lead in this.
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