According to a recent report by the Union Ministry of Education. Government of India, about 8,000 schools across the country had no students enrolled during the 2024-25 academic year, with West Bengal accounting for the majority of such institutions, followed by Telangana.
There were a total of 20,817 teachers working in schools with no students enrolled. In an unprecedented instance, West Bengal had 17,965 such teachers, as well as the biggest number of schools without enrollment (3,812).
According to Ministry of Education figures, 7,993 schools had no enrollments, a decrease of over 5,000 from the previous year's total of 12,954. In addition, the number of single-teacher schools dropped from 1,18,190 in 2022-23 to 1,10,971 in 2023-24, representing a 6 per cent decrease.
Meanwhile, Haryana, Maharashtra, Goa, Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura lacked such schools.
"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 Union Education Ministry senior official told PTI.
According to the report, no schools had zero enrollment in the Union Territories of Puducherry, Lakshadweep, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Daman and Diu, or Chandigarh. Delhi also has no schools with zero enrollment.
Telangana had the second-highest number of such schools, with 2,245, followed by Madhya Pradesh (463). While Telangana has 1,016 teachers working in these schools, Madhya Pradesh has 223.
Uttar Pradesh had 81 such schools. The Uttar Pradesh Madhyamik Shiksha Parishad (UP Board) has declared that it is prepared to revoke the recognition of its affiliated schools across the state that have had no students enrolled for the last three academic years.
Over 33 lakh children in the country are registered in over 1 lakh single-teacher schools, with Andhra Pradesh having the most such cases, followed by Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Lakshadweep.
However, when it comes to student enrollment in schools with only one instructor, Uttar Pradesh leads the way, followed by Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh.
