Economic Survey highlights uneven distribution of secondary schools, Pg14

Key Highlights:

• The Economic Survey 2025-26 highlights the uneven distribution of secondary schools as a key challenge in achieving the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 target of 15 years of schooling.
• Only about 17% of schools in rural areas provide secondary education, compared to about 38% in urban areas.
• Nearly two crore adolescents aged 14-18 are out of school, according to the Periodic Labour Force Survey 2023-24.
• The survey cites the need to supplement household income (44%) and domestic responsibilities (55% for girls) as leading reasons for school dropouts.
• India has 23 IITs, 21 IIMs, and 20 AIIMS, and is establishing international IIT campuses in Zanzibar and Abu Dhabi.

Detailed Insights:

• The largest number of out-of-school children are of secondary school age (14-18 years), correlating with the uneven distribution of schools.
• The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025 aims to replace fragmented regulations and focus on the internationalization of higher education.
• The secondary age-specific net enrolment rate (NER) remains low at 52.2%, indicating a need to retain students beyond Grade VIII.
• Integrating school-based vocational and skills education is an urgent priority due to high dropout rates driven by economic pressures.
• Only 0.97% of adolescents aged 14-18 have received institutional skilling, highlighting the need for improved vocational training.
• The survey emphasizes the need to develop state capacities for higher education, as over 81% of higher education enrolments are in state institutions.

Key Concepts Involved:

• National Education Policy (NEP) 2020: A policy framework to transform the education system in India by 2040.
• Expected Years of Schooling (EYS): The average number of years of education that a child is expected to receive.
• Net Enrolment Rate (NER): The percentage of children of a specific age group enrolled in school.