Pupil-teacher ratio poor in Punjab Govt schools, intake dips

Punjab’s schools have a pupil-teacher ratio of 22, lower than the national average of 24, with the average number of teachers per school at 10, according to the Union Education Ministry’s latest UDISE+ 2024-25 report. It highlights a continued shift in student enrolment from government to private schools and provides a detailed look at school infrastructure across the state.

Punjab’s total school enrolment stands at 59.08 lakh, a decline of nearly 80,000 from last year’s figure of 59,88,681. The data shows that more students study in private schools than those run by the government.

Government school enrolments have gone down from 28.23 lakh last year to 26.69 lakh, while private school enrolments have risen from 29.81 lakh to 30.63 lakh. Government-aided schools also saw a decrease, with enrolments dropping to 1.74 lakh from last year’s 1.82 lakh. Another 1,179 students are in schools under “other categories”.

The state has 27,281 schools, comprising 19,243 government schools, 437 government-aided schools, 7,589 private-unaided schools, and 12 others. Teacher numbers saw a modest rise, reaching 2,73,130, up from 2,73,092 last year. Notably, the number of teachers in zero-enrolment schools has decreased to nine, and only 13 schools report zero enrolment. There are 2,431 single-teacher schools with a combined enrolment of 76,942.

Of the state’s 27,281 schools, 26,890 have libraries or reading corners, 26,438 have playgrounds, 1,453 offer digital libraries, and 20,462 have kitchen gardens. Nearly all schools (27,273) have drinking water facility. For sanitation, 26,727 schools have functional toilets for girls, and 26,260 for boys. The report also notes 27,261 schools are equipped with electricity and 5,772 have solar panels.