Key Details
The UDISE+ 2025–26 Report covers 14.67 lakh schools, 1.03 crore teachers and 24.72 crore students. The data show that more students are progressing between stages, but participation weakens substantially before the end of secondary school.
Indicator | What the Data Show |
|---|---|
Secondary dropout | Fell from 8.2% in 2024–25 to 7.0% |
Secondary retention | Improved from 47.2% to 51.9%, but remains well below earlier stages |
Student progression | Transition to secondary school reached 88.3% |
Teacher availability | Pupil–teacher ratios ranged from 10:1 at the foundational stage to 21:1 at secondary level |
Teacher deployment | 1,00,843 single-teacher schools served more than 29 lakh students |
Unused capacity | 5,663 zero-enrolment schools reported 20,667 teachers |
Infrastructure | Computers were available in 69.9% of schools, internet in 67.4% and ramps with handrails in 58.2% |
More Students Are Progressing Through School
UDISE+ data for 2025–26 show high transition rates across school stages:
99.2% from foundational to preparatory
93.8% from preparatory to middle
88.3% from middle to secondary
Dropout declined from 2.3% to 1.8% at the preparatory stage and from 8.2% to 7% at secondary level. The middle-stage rate edged up from 3.5% to 3.6%.
Girls recorded lower dropout rates than boys at all three stages. At secondary level, the difference was substantial: 5.7% for girls compared with 8.3% for boys.
Secondary Retention Remains the Central Challenge
Improved transition into secondary school has not translated into equally strong retention through the stage.
Secondary retention increased from 47.2% to 51.9%, but remained considerably below earlier stages. The Gross Enrolment Ratio was 71.7% at secondary level, compared with 89.6% at the middle stage.
The combination of improving transition and dropout rates with much lower retention points to a cumulative loss of students during the secondary years.
Teacher Numbers Conceal Deployment Gaps
India’s overall pupil–teacher ratio stood at 24:1, within the NEP 2020 benchmark of 30:1. Stage-level ratios ranged from 10:1 at foundational level to 21:1 at secondary level.
Yet 29.12 lakh students attended single-teacher schools, while 20,667 teachers were posted in schools reporting no students.
Single-teacher schools declined by around 3% and zero-enrolment schools by 29%, but the figures show that teacher deployment remains a problem even when national ratios appear adequate.
Basic Amenities Outpace Digital and Accessible Infrastructure
Basic facilities are approaching universal coverage: 99.5% of schools have drinking water, 98.5% girls’ toilets and 95% electricity.
Gaps are larger elsewhere. Around one in three schools lacks internet connectivity, 30.1% do not report computer facilities, and only 58.2% have ramps with handrails.
The infrastructure gap has therefore shifted increasingly from basic amenities towards digital connectivity and accessibility.
Girls accounted for 48.4% of students, while women represented 54.9% of the teaching workforce.
What Is the Difference Between Dropout and Retention?
The dropout rate measures students leaving during a particular year or stage. The retention rate tracks how much of an entering cohort remains through the entire stage. A relatively low annual dropout rate can therefore coexist with substantial cumulative losses over several years.
Policy Relevance
Secondary completion needs a targeted strategy. States should identify whether students leave because of costs, distance, examination failure, early employment, marriage or limited subject availability.
Teacher deployment requires school-level planning. National pupil–teacher ratios should be supplemented by data on school location, enrolment, teacher specialisation and subject vacancies.
Rationalisation must preserve physical access. Redeploying teachers and consolidating underused schools may improve efficiency, but remote settlements require safeguards against longer and less secure journeys.
Digital policy should measure effective use. Functional equipment, connectivity quality, teacher capability and student access matter more than the presence of a computer or connection alone.
Administrative progress is not evidence of learning improvement. UDISE+ indicators should be examined alongside independently measured learning outcomes.
Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders: Can India convert improving school access into universal secondary completion by addressing the cumulative reasons students leave and deploying teachers more effectively?
Follow the Full Report Here: India’s School Education Improves, but Secondary Retention Remains a Challenge