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Over 1 Lakh Schools Lack Power, 98,500 Without Girls' Toilet: Niti Aayog Report
Niti Aayog's report highlights widespread deficiencies in government school infrastructure, staffing, and learning indicators in India, including lack of toilets for girls, electricity, water, and labs, along with high dropout rates and low teacher effectiveness. The findings point to systemic gaps across multiple states and call for policy action.
Why It Matters
The report signals significant barriers to access and quality in government schooling, with implications for education outcomes and policy reforms nationwide.
Timeline
11 Events
Parakh-based outcome mapping
May 7, 2026
Parakh-based outcomes mapping shows Jharkhand, Gujarat, and Jammu-Kashmir performing poorly, while Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan performing better.
Education spending relative to GDP
May 7, 2026
India spends 4.6% of its GDP on education, compared with about 5.9% in the UK and US, and about 5.4% in Germany and France.
Secondary dropout rate and state trends
May 7, 2026
The national secondary dropout rate stands at 11.5%. Bihar's dropout rate rose from 2.98% to 9.3%, and Uttar Pradesh's rose from 0.52% to 3.0%.
Ghost schools and zero enrolment
May 7, 2026
There are around 7,993 schools with zero enrolment. West Bengal accounts for the highest share of such ghost schools (3,812), followed by Telangana (2,245).
Pupil-Teacher Ratio in Jharkhand
May 7, 2026
Jharkhand's government secondary schools show a pupil-teacher ratio of 47:1.
Single-teacher schools and rural concentration
May 7, 2026
There are 1,04,125 schools running with a single teacher, with about 89% of these located in rural areas.
Science laboratories in government secondary schools
May 7, 2026
Only 51.7% of government secondary schools have science laboratories.
Water and handwash facilities gaps
May 7, 2026
Around 14,505 schools lack water access and 59,829 schools do not have handwash facilities.
Electricity access in schools
May 7, 2026
Electricity access in schools has improved from 55% to 91.9% over the past decade, but 1.19 lakh schools remain without functional electricity.
Girls' toilets deficiency highlighted
May 7, 2026
The report identifies that 98,592 schools do not have functional girls' toilets and 61,540 schools do not have any usable toilet.
Niti Aayog releases School Education System In India report
May 7, 2026
Niti Aayog released the government report titled 'School Education System In India'. The findings indicate thousands of government schools lack basic facilities such as water, toilets, electricity, and labs, and there is a notable shortage of teachers. The report also notes that only 10-15% of government school teachers score above 60% in their subject.