13 schools closed every day in India last year: Report
What's the story
The number of schools in India has declined from 14,71,473 in the 2024-25 academic year to 14,66,682 in 2025-26. The data was released by the Ministry of Education's Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) report. According to the report, an average of 13 schools were closed every day across India during this period.
Closure statistics
Madhya Pradesh tops list of school closures
Madhya Pradesh witnessed the most school closures, with 2,426 schools shutting down. This accounts for over half of all school closures in India. Telangana was next on the list with 1,392 closures, followed by West Bengal (568), Andhra Pradesh (474), Tamil Nadu (369), Karnataka (281), and Himachal Pradesh (266).
Enrollment decline
Bihar added schools but saw decline in enrollment
While some states witnessed a decline in the number of schools, others saw an increase. Bihar added 946 schools during this period, followed by Chhattisgarh (234) and Delhi (87). However, all three states saw a drop in student enrollment. Bihar's student count fell by 4,37,037 from the previous year, while Chhattisgarh and Delhi saw declines of 49,459 and 45,250 students, respectively.
School employment
Decline in zero-enrollment schools
The report also noted a decline in the number of zero-enrollment schools for the first time, from 7,993 in 2024-25 to 5,663 in 2025-26. Despite having no students enrolled, these schools still employ a total of 20,667 teachers across India. West Bengal saw an increase of 321 zero-enrollment schools during this period.
Teacher employment
Uttar Pradesh recorded a rise in zero-enrollment schools
In Uttar Pradesh, the number of zero-enrollment schools rose from 81 in 2024-25 to 313 in 2025-26. The number of teachers posted at these schools also increased from 56 to 177. Chhattisgarh also saw a major change, with no zero-enrollment schools recorded in the previous year but reporting 149 such schools this year, employing around 140 teachers.