The Ministry of Education has informed the Lok Sabha that the opening, merger and closure of government schools fall under the jurisdiction of state governments
and Union Territory administrations, reiterating that any consolidation of schools must not compromise students' access to education. Responding to an unstarred question in the Lok Sabha on July 27, Minister of State for Education Jayant Chaudhary said education is a subject in the Concurrent List of the Constitution, making states and UTs responsible for decisions related to school mergers and closures. The ministry added that the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 permits school consolidation only when it is carried out judiciously and ensures there is no adverse impact on access to education. Number of Government Schools Declines Over Five Years The Centre stated that it does not maintain separate data on school closures and mergers. However, data uploaded by states and UTs on the Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) shows that the total number of government schools in the country declined from 10,22,386 in 2021-22 to 10,05,245 in 2025-26. Among states, Uttar Pradesh recorded the highest number of government schools at 1,37,103 in 2025-26. The ministry also shared district-wise figures for the state for the last five years. Addressing concerns over the impact of school mergers on disadvantaged groups, the ministry furnished Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) data for girls, Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) students for 2024-25 and 2025-26. It also shared retention rate data for girls across different stages of schooling. Centre Highlights Measures Under Samagra Shiksha The ministry highlighted that learning outcomes are being assessed through the PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024, conducted by NCERT. The nationwide assessment covered over 21.15 lakh students and 2.70 lakh teachers from more than 74,000 schools across 781 districts to establish baseline competencies under NEP 2020. The Centre further said that under the Samagra Shiksha scheme, financial assistance is provided to states and UTs for strengthening school infrastructure, improving access, maintaining pupil-teacher ratios, and supporting the enrolment and retention of students, including children with special needs. Teacher recruitment and deployment, however, remain the responsibility of the respective states and UTs.
