By Soniya:
Jharkhand has recorded a major improvement in school education by achieving a 0% primary dropout rate in 2024-25, according to data from the Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) and a NITI Aayog report released on 8 May 2026. The state’s primary dropout rate stood at 6.41% in 2014-15 and had remained above 11% in 2022-23 before falling to zero for both boys and girls.
The state also reported significant progress at higher education levels. The upper primary dropout rate declined from 7.42% in 2014-15 to 1.7% in 2024-25, while the secondary dropout rate reduced sharply from 23.2% to 3.5% during the same period. Jharkhand ranked fourth nationally in reducing secondary school dropouts.
Dropout rate refers to the percentage of students who leave school before completing a particular stage of education. In India, primary education covers Classes I to V, upper primary includes Classes VI to VIII, and secondary education includes Classes IX to X.
The report also highlighted changes in Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER), which measures total enrolment as a percentage of the eligible age group population. Jharkhand’s primary GER declined from 109.2% in 2014-15 to 92.5% in 2024-25, while secondary GER improved from 66.05% to 72%.
Despite the progress, challenges remain in the state’s education system. Around 86,000 children were still reported to be out of school as of September 2023. Jharkhand also faced nearly 99,565 teaching vacancies in 2025-26, including more than 80,000 at the elementary level, along with over 9,000 single-teacher schools.
The state government plans to continue surveys and enrolment drives to support its goal of achieving zero dropouts across all districts and villages.
