Over the last half decade, government schools in India have come down to 18,727, while that of private schools has surged by 8,475 in just one year. The data was shared by the Union Minister of Education, Jayant Chaudhry, on Thursday.
The data was revealed while replying to a question by MP John Brittas, who sought details about the number of government schools that are currently functioning and closed in the country.
Chaudhary told the Rajya Sabha that the graph of the government schools in India has declined from 1,032,019 in 2020–21 to 1,013,322 in 2024–25 over five years.
As per the data, Madhya Pradesh witnessed 6,902 government schools shut down, which marks the highest in total. Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir witnessed 4,382; Assam, 2,008; Odisha, 1,631; Himachal Pradesh, 1,116; Karnataka, 947; Maharashtra, 850; West Bengal, -1,225; Haryana, -225; and Andhra Pradesh, -259.
Official data also demonstrate that the number of private schools surged from 331,108 in 2023-24 to 339,583 in 2024-25, showing the addition of 8,475 new private schools within a single year.
In Rajasthan, 1,342 government schools have been established over the past five years, followed by Bihar with 765, while Telangana recorded an increase of 42 schools.
Minister Chaudhary cited the Concurrent List of the Constitution, stating that matters related to education—including the opening and closure of government schools, staffing, and funding—fall within the jurisdiction of state governments and Union Territory administrations.
Meanwhile, Brittas on X said, “The government admits in Rajya Sabha: India lost 18,727 government schools in 5 years, while private unaided schools rose by 8,475 in just one year. Public education is shrinking. Private schooling is expanding.”
