Nearly 8,000 schools across India had no student enrolments in the 2024–25 academic session, employing over 20,000 teachers, official data from the Ministry of Education revealed. West Bengal accounted for the bulk of such schools, followed by Telangana and Madhya Pradesh.
According to the Ministry, a total of 7,993 schools recorded zero enrolments, down from 12,954 in the previous year. West Bengal alone had 3,812 schools without students, employing 17,965 teachers in these institutions. Telangana reported 2,245 schools with zero enrolments and 1,016 teachers, while Madhya Pradesh had 463 schools with 223 teachers.
“School education is a state subject, states have been advised to address the issue of zero enrolments in schools. Some states have merged some schools for optimum utilisation of resources such as infrastructure as well as staff,” a senior official informed.
Uttar Pradesh had 81 such schools, prompting the Uttar Pradesh Madhyamik Shiksha Parishad to prepare to revoke recognition of affiliated schools with zero enrolments over the past three consecutive academic years.
Also read: Over 33 lakh students attend single-teacher schools nationwide
Several states, including Haryana, Maharashtra, Goa, Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura, reported no schools with zero enrolment. Similarly, Union Territories such as Delhi, Puducherry, Lakshadweep, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Daman and Diu, and Chandigarh had none.
Meanwhile, single-teacher schools remain widespread. Over 33 lakh students are enrolled across more than one lakh single-teacher schools nationwide. Andhra Pradesh has the highest number of these schools, followed by Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Lakshadweep. In terms of student enrolment, Uttar Pradesh leads, followed by Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh.
The number of single-teacher schools has declined from 1,18,190 in 2022–23 to 1,10,971 in 2023–24, registering a fall of around six per cent.
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