New Delhi, Jul 7 (PTI) The student dropout rate in schools witnessed a sharp and consistent decline across critical learning stages, according to the UDISE 2025-26 report released by the Ministry of Education, even as the student retention rate declined marginally at the foundation and preparatory levels.
UDISE+ (Unified District Information System for Education Plus) is the government of India’s official digital database for the education sector. Maintained by the Ministry of Education, it collates real-time statistics on school infrastructure, student enrolment, and teacher metrics.
“The academic year 2025-26 has seen a notable reduction in dropout rates across preparatory and secondary levels as compared to the previous years – 2022-23, 2023-24, and 2024-25.
“At the preparatory level, the dropout rate declined from 2.3 per cent in 2024-25 to 1.8 per cent in 2025-26, and at the secondary level from 8.2 per cent to 7.0 per cent,” the report said.
“This downward trend highlights improved student retention and reflects the success of initiatives aimed at keeping children engaged in their education.
“The consistent decrease across all levels suggests that schools are becoming more supportive and responsive to students’ needs,” it added.
The academic year 2025-26 has shown a positive trend in student retention at the middle and secondary levels, increasing from 82.8 per cent (2024-25) to 83.7 per cent (2025-26) at the middle level and from 47.2 per cent (2024-25) to 51.9 per cent (2025-26) at the secondary level.
“A marginal decline was observed at the foundational and preparatory levels in 2025-26, following three consecutive years of improvement from 2022-23 to 2024-25.
“One of the key contributing factors to this improvement, particularly at the secondary level, is the increase in the number of schools offering secondary education.
“This expansion has enhanced accessibility and encouraged continued enrolment. Overall, the rising retention rates are a strong indicator of progress in the education system and reflect the impact of targeted interventions,” the report said.
There has been a considerable improvement in the gross enrolment ratio (GER) at the secondary level during the academic year 2025-26, increasing from 68.5 per cent in 2024-25 to 71.7 per cent in 2025-26.
The report is based on voluntary uploading of data by schools having active UDISE+ codes in the academic year 2025-26 (reference year), with March 31, 2026, as the cutoff date.
The data is filled in the online data capture format (DCF).
For the first time in any academic year, the total number of school teachers across the country crossed 1.02 crore during 2025-26, the report said.
“Increase in the number of teachers is a critical step toward improving student-teacher ratios, ensuring quality education, and addressing regional disparities in teacher availability.
“The numbers have been steadily increasing since 2022-23. There has been an increase of 8.3 per cent in the number of teachers during the reporting year (2025-26) as compared to 2022-23,” it said. PTI GJS GJS ARI ARI ARI
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