GUWAHATI: Assam recorded a 4.1% decline in student enrolment in government and government-aided schools in 2024–25, in line with the national average decline of 4.4%, Education Minister Ranoj Pegu said in a post on X. The state’s total enrolment fell from 51,89,931 in 2023–24 to 49,77,163 in 2024–25, a drop of 2,12,768 students.
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The national picture shows a similar pattern, with total enrolment in government and government-aided schools falling from 15,30,38,040 to 14,63,51,437, a decline of 66,86,603 students. Assam has also completed a three-year cleanup of the UDISE+ database by linking records with Aadhaar and removing duplicate, fictitious and inactive entries, deleting nearly three lakh enrolment records to reflect actual student strength more accurately.
While overall enrolment has declined, Assam has seen a mixed trend within the school system. Enrolment in primary grades has fallen, but Classes IX to XII registered a 0.9% rise, or 9,917 students, from 11,00,615 to 11,10,532. Nationally, Class IX–XII enrolment fell by 0.6% during the same period.
The data also places Assam within a broader statewise trend of enrolment decline. Several large states, including Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, recorded sharper drops in total enrolment, while Bihar stood out with a 20.1% rise in Classes IX to XII despite an overall decline in total enrolment.
Pegu also said the fall in school intake is also linked to demographic changes, as Assam has seen sustained declines in Total Fertility Rate (TFR) and Crude Birth Rate (CBR), leading to fewer children entering the school system. Dropout rates have, however, improved steadily, falling between 2021–22 and 2024–25 from 6.02% to 3.8% at the primary level, from 8.8% to 5.0% at the upper primary level, and from 20.3% to 17.5% at the secondary level.
