India Records Strong Gains In School Enrolment, Higher Education Institutions: Economic Survey 2025-26

India has recorded notable gains in school enrolment and the expansion of higher education institutions, according to the Economic Survey 2025-26 tabled in Parliament on Thursday.

Presented by Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman, the Survey attributed these gains to strengthened infrastructure and improved teacher capacity, supported by policy initiatives including the Right to Education Act, 2009, and the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

Reforms such as updated UGC guidelines, regulations for academic collaboration and mutual recognition of qualifications, and permissions for foreign branch campuses, including those in GIFT City, were also cited as contributing factors.

“Achievements in the education space have been marked by enhanced literacy rates, increasing enrolment in schools and higher education institutions, provision of vocational education avenues, etc. The Right to Education Act 2009 and the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP) have played a crucial role in shaping the education landscape by expanding access to quality education universally, promoting equity, and driving innovation in teaching and learning,” the Survey said.

Improved Enrolment Across School Levels

Highlighting progress at the school level, the Survey said, “India has made notable gains in school enrolment by strengthening infrastructure and teacher capacity, with schemes like Poshan Shakti Nirman and Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan promoting access and equity.”

The Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) stands at 90.9 at the primary stage (Grades I to V), 90.3 at the upper primary level (Grades VI to VIII), 78.7 at the secondary stage (Grades IX and X), and 58.4 at the higher secondary stage (Grades XI and XII).

Expansion Of Higher Education Institutions

The Survey noted a sharp rise in the number of higher education institutions (HEIs), which increased from 51,534 in 2014-15 to 70,018 as of June 2025. This growth includes a substantial expansion in universities and colleges across the country.

Premier institutions have also seen significant expansion between 2014-15 and 2024-25, with India now hosting 23 IITs, 21 IIMs, and 20 AIIMS. Additionally, two international IIT campuses have been established in Zanzibar and Abu Dhabi.

According to the All-India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2022-23 (Provisional), student enrolment rose from 4.33 crore in 2021-22 to 4.46 crore in 2022-23.

“India’s education sectors require unwavering focus to unlock the nation’s true potential through integrated, accountable, and adaptive policy frameworks to build a future-ready workforce,” the Survey said.

The document also advocated a holistic, lifecycle approach to raise India’s Expected Years of Schooling (EYS) to 15 years, in line with NEP’s 5+3+3+4 schooling structure for ages 3–18. The approach encompassing “early childhood education, foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN), universal secondary schooling, and the seamless integration of vocational and digital skills,” it said, would help convert the country’s vast human resource base into high-quality human capital.

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