Jaipur: Enrolment in Rajasthan schools dropped by more than 8.4 lakh students during the first two academic sessions under the Bhajan Lal Sharma govt, with state-run schools accounting for most of the decline, according to the UDISE+ 2025-26 report released Tuesday.UDISE+ is a national, centralised database for the school education sector.The figures – covering govt, aided and private schools – show enrolment falling steadily despite the state’s push to upgrade infrastructure, recruit teachers and implement the National Education Policy (NEP).The state’s total school enrolment fell from nearly 1.7 crore in 2023-24 to around 1.6 crore in 2024-25 and further to 1.6 crore in 2025-26. This represents a cumulative decline of over 8.4 lakh students in two years, or more than 4 lakh students in each of the last two academic sessions.TOI reached out to school education minister Madan Dilawar for comments, but his office said he was busy at a programme with Union minister Nitin Gadkari and would respond Thursday.The slide in enrolments came even as the number of schools in the state remained largely unchanged at just over 1 lakh – dipping from 1,07,757 in 2023-24 to 1,06,302 in 2024-25, before inching up to 1,06,445 in 2025-26.Over the same period, the number of teachers rose from around 7.8 lakh to over 7.9 lakh, a clear indication that the drop in enrolments occurred despite a net increase in teaching staff.Nationally, school enrolments declined from 24.8 crore in 2023-24 to around 24.6 crore in 2024-25, before recovering marginally to over 24.7 crore in 2025-26. Rajasthan, however, continued to record a year-on-year fall that is sharper than the national trend.Govt schools in the state bore the brunt of the decline, with enrolments dropping from 83.8 lakh in 2023-24 to 77.8 lakh in 2024-25 and further to 74.5 lakh in 2025-26 — a loss of over 9.3 lakh students in three years.Private schools largely held their ground, with their student strength rising from 82.6 lakh in 2023-24 to 84.5 lakh in 2024-25, before easing to 83.7 lakh in 2025-26.In effect, while govt schools lost more than 9.3 lakh students in two years, private schools added around 1.15 lakh over the same period, signalling continued migration towards private education.The latest figures come just months after private school enrolment overtook govt schools in Rajasthan for the first time.The decline in enrolments was recorded among both boys and girls, with the former accounting for a larger share.Boys’ enrolment across govt and private schools fell from over 89 lakh in 2023-24 to over 84 lakh in 2025-26, a drop of nearly 5 lakh. Girls’ enrolment, meanwhile, declined from under 78 lakh to over 75 lakh, over the same period, down more than 3.4 lakh.Boys made up nearly 60% of the overall fall.Education experts say the trend cannot be attributed to a single factor. Falling fertility rates, a shrinking school-age population, migration, school rationalisation and the clean-up of enrolment databases have all contributed to lower numbers.Damodar Goyal, president of the Society for Private Unaided Schools, Rajasthan, said the decline also points to a deeper crisis in public education. “The sharp fall in enrolment reflects declining public confidence in govt schools. Teacher vacancies, poor infrastructure, excessive non-academic work and weak implementation of the Right to Education Act have affected the quality of education. Unless these issues are addressed urgently, the decline is likely to worsen,” he said.The drop in enrolments came despite the Bhajan Lal Sharma govt’s emphasis on upgrading school infrastructure, expanding digital classrooms and rolling out NEP reforms. Even with 17,000 teacher recruitments over the two years, enrolment has continued to fall, suggesting demographic change alone may not fully explain the trend.The latest UDISE+ data shows Rajasthan’s education landscape is undergoing a structural shift, said former UNICEF policy planner K B Kothari. “A school is built on trust as much as on bricks and mortar. Incidents such as the Jhalawar school roof collapse, coupled with persistent concerns over infrastructure and learning quality, weaken that trust. Restoring public confidence in govt schools should now be as important as improving enrolment figures,” he said.For GFX:Total School EnrolmentsYear Total Govt Private2023-24 1.68 cr 83.8 lakh 82.6 lakh2024-25 1.64 cr 77.8 lakh 84.5 lakh2025-26 1.6 cr 74.5 lakh 83.8 lakhBoys’ Enrolment Vs Girls’Year Boys Girls2023-24 89,03,667 78,82,3982024-25 86,57,646 77,06,5412025-26 84,03,856 75,41,599
