NEW DELHI: Schools have continued to see a sharp decline in student dropout rates at the critical stage of learning, despite a slight decline in student retention rates in the foundation and matriculation stages, according to the USIDE 2025-26 report released by the education ministry.UDISE+ (Unified District Information System for Education+) is the official digital database of the Education Department, Government of India. Maintained by the Ministry of Education, it collates real-time statistics on school infrastructure, student enrollment and teacher indicators.“The dropout rate in matriculation and secondary school dropped significantly in the academic year 2025-26 compared to previous years (2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25).“The dropout rate at the matriculation level will fall from 2.3% in 2024-25 to 1.8% in 2025-26, and at the secondary level from 8.2% to 7.0%,” the report said.“This downward trend highlights improvements in student retention and reflects the success of initiatives aimed at engaging children in education.The report added: “Continued declines across all levels indicate that schools are becoming more supportive and responsive to pupils’ needs.”In the 2025-26 school year, student retention rates for middle and high schools showed a positive trend, with the retention rate for middle school students increasing from 82.8% (2024-25) to 83.7% (2025-26) and the retention rate for middle school students increasing from 47.2% (2024-25) to 51.9% (2025-26).“Following three consecutive years of improvement from 2022-23 to 2024-25, there has been a slight decline in foundation and foundation levels in 2025-26.“One of the key factors in this improvement, particularly at the secondary level, is the increase in the number of schools offering secondary education.“This expansion improves access and encourages continued enrollment. Overall, rising retention rates are a strong indicator of progress in the education system and reflect the impact of targeted interventions,” the report said.In the 2025-26 school year, the secondary school gross enrollment ratio (GER) improved significantly from 68.5% in the 2024-25 school year to 71.7% in the 2025-26 school year.The report is based on data voluntarily uploaded by schools with valid UDISE+ codes for the 2025-26 school year (reference year), as of March 31, 2026.Data are populated in online Data Capture Format (DCF).The report said that during 2025-26, the total number of school teachers in the country exceeded 102,000 for the first time.“Increasing the number of teachers is a key step to improve the teacher-student ratio, ensure the quality of education and resolve regional differences in teacher resources.“This number has been growing steadily since 2022-23. There is an 8.3% increase in the number of teachers in the reporting year (2025-26) compared with 2022-23.”
