The government schools and junior colleges in Telangana have witnessed a significant drop in student enrollments over the past few years, signaling growing concerns about the quality of public education. According to the Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE) plus report released by the Ministry of Education, admissions in government institutions fell sharply from 33,03,699 in the academic year 2021-22 to 27,79,713 in 2023-24 — a drop of 5,23,986 students.
In stark contrast, private institutions in the state have seen a surge in admissions. While government schools struggled with declining enrollment numbers, private schools have seen an increase from 35,14,338 students in 2021-22 to 44,31,380 in 2023-24 — a jump of over 9 lakh students. This stark contrast between public and private education institutions has raised alarms within the government regarding the growing preference for private schools and the quality of education in public institutions.
Despite the government’s efforts to reverse the trend through initiatives such as the Badi Bata (admission drive), which involves teachers reaching out to households and enrolling students in government schools, the situation has worsened. The report reveals that the number of government institutions stood at 30,022 in comparison to just 12,126 private institutions in 2023-24.
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The drop in government school enrollments can be attributed to several factors. The lack of infrastructure and supervision in government schools has been a major issue. According to Chava Ravi, president of the United Teachers’ Federation Telangana State, many students who had joined government schools during the COVID-19 pandemic period shifted back to private schools due to inadequate facilities and a lack of proper supervision. Furthermore, the growing demand for English medium education, which the government introduced in all schools, has not been enough to retain students.
The government has introduced bilingual textbooks and efforts to provide English medium education in a bid to cater to this demand. However, these initiatives have not yielded the desired results in terms of increasing enrollments. Many parents, considering private schools a status symbol, continue to prefer them over government-run institutions.
The decline in admissions is a wake-up call for the government to take urgent measures to improve the quality of education in public schools. Experts suggest that the government should focus on enhancing infrastructure, filling supervisory positions, and instilling confidence in parents about the capabilities of the public education system. As the gap between public and private schools continues to widen, ensuring basic amenities and improving education standards in government schools will be crucial to reversing this trend.
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