Srinagar, Jul 27: Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed a sharp decline in the number of government schools over the past five years, with official data tabled in the Lok Sabha revealing that 4,386 schools have ceased to exist during the period.
According to information furnished by the Ministry of Education in response to an unstarred question in the Lok Sabha, the number of government schools in the Union Territory fell from 23,173 in 2021–22 to 18,787 in 2025–26. The figure remained almost unchanged at 18,785 during 2022–23, 2023–24 and 2024–25, before registering a marginal increase of two schools in the current academic year.
Responding to the query, Minister of State for Education Jayant Chaudhary reiterated that education is a subject under the Concurrent List of the Constitution, and decisions regarding the opening, merger or closure of schools lie with the respective state governments and Union Territory administrations.
The minister said the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 permits the consolidation of schools only when undertaken judiciously and without compromising students’ access to neighbourhood schools. He added that the policy encourages the formation of school complexes or clusters to enhance governance, optimise the use of resources and improve institutional management while safeguarding access to education.
The Ministry also informed Parliament that the number of government schools across the country has declined from 10,22,386 in 2021–22 to 10,05,245 in 2025–26, based on data submitted by states and Union Territories through the Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+).
The Centre further said that it continues to extend financial assistance to states and Union Territories under the Samagra Shiksha scheme for strengthening school infrastructure, constructing classrooms, providing transport facilities, distributing free textbooks and uniforms, and supporting enrolment and student retention initiatives.
However, the Ministry maintained that policy decisions concerning school mergers and closures, as well as teacher recruitment and deployment, remain the exclusive responsibility of the respective state governments and Union Territory administrations.
