Govt. schools account for 55.9% of total enrolments, says survey

Why in the News?

The National Sample Survey (80th round, April–June 2025) revealed that government schools account for 55.9% of total enrolments in India.
The survey also highlighted high expenditure gaps between government and non-government schools, and the rising trend of private coaching.

Government schools remain the backbone of India’s education system, particularly in rural areas (66% enrolment) compared to urban areas (30.1%).
Private unaided schools account for 31.9% of enrolment nationally.
Household expenditure on education was assessed for 57,742 students across 52,085 households through computer-assisted interviews.
The survey aimed to generate national-level estimates of education expenditure and coaching dependence for 2025–26.

Expenditure Gap:

Avg. annual expenditure per student: ₹2,863 in government schools vs ₹25,002 in non-government schools (~9x higher).
Course fees = largest expense (₹7,111 per student on average).

Private Coaching:

Source of Funding:

Rural–Urban Divide:

Urban students face significantly higher costs (course fee avg. ₹15,143 vs ₹3,979 in rural).
Other expenses (transport, uniforms, stationery) are also higher in urban areas.

Course Fee Incidence:

Equity Gap: The Huge disparity in the cost of education between government and private schools widens inequality.
Coaching Dependence: One-third of students rely on private coaching, reflecting possible gaps in classroom teaching quality.
Rural–Urban Divide: Higher expenditure burden on urban families, increasing financial strain.
Low Scholarship Penetration: Govt. scholarships benefit only ~1% of students, showing poor outreach.
Quality Perception: Many parents prefer private schools despite high costs, questioning the quality of education in government. schools.

Strengthen Public Education

Improve infrastructure, teacher training, and learning outcomes in the government. schools.
Reduce reliance on private coaching by improving in-class teaching quality.

Expand Financial Support

Enhance scholarships, subsidies, and direct benefit transfers (DBT) for poor and rural students.
Provide fee waivers for vulnerable households.

Bridge Rural–Urban Gap

Uniform policy on expenditure support, digital tools, and community-based learning centres.

Regulate Private Education

Transparent fee structures and regulation of private schools and coaching centres.
Encourage affordable private schools in underserved areas.

Policy Focus

Integrate findings into the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 implementation.
Promote vocational and digital learning models to reduce over-reliance on traditional coaching.