Nagaland shows sharp rise in student transition rates, but enrolment gaps persist in secondary and higher secondary levels.
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DIMAPUR — Nagaland has recorded notable improvement in student transition rates over the past decade, despite continuing challenges in enrolment at the upper primary (classes 6 to 8), secondary (classes 9 and 10), and higher secondary (classes 11 and 12) levels, according to the latest NITI Aayog policy report titled “School Education System in India: Temporal Analysis and Policy Roadmap for Quality Enhancement.”
The report, released on May 6, is based on UDISE+ data spanning a decade from 2014-15 to 2024-25.
The report highlighted that Nagaland was among the top-performing states in improving the transition of students from primary (grade 1-5) to upper primary level during the last ten years.
According to the report, Nagaland’s transition rate from primary to upper primary level improved from 78.69 percent in 2014-15 to 91.5 percent in 2024-25, making it the second-highest improvement in the country after Andhra Pradesh, which increased from 51.98 percent to 94.5 percent. Uttar Pradesh followed with an improvement from 78.46 percent to 91 percent.
Nagaland also showed improvement in the transition from upper primary to secondary level, rising from 78.31 percent in 2014-15 to 83.8 percent in 2024-25.
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The report noted that the progress reflects better retention and continuation of students at different stages of schooling.
However, despite improvements in transition rates, the report pointed out that Nagaland continues to lag behind in Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) at various levels of education.
At the upper primary level (grades 6 to 8), Nagaland recorded a GER of 71 percent in 2024-25, placing it among the weakest-performing states in the country alongside Bihar, Sikkim and Jammu & Kashmir.
The report also noted that the state’s upper primary GER declined from 78.92 percent in 2014-15 to 71 percent in 2024-25.
At the secondary level, Nagaland recorded a GER of 61.8 percent, placing it among the bottom-performing states along with Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir.
The situation remained concerning at the higher secondary level, where Nagaland recorded a GER of 39.8 percent in 2024-25, placing it among the lowest-performing states in the country. Bihar recorded the lowest GER at 38.1 percent, followed closely by Meghalaya 39.7 percent.
The report observed that secondary and higher secondary education remain critical areas of concern across many states due to economic constraints, social pressures, early entry into the workforce and limited institutional support, all of which affect student retention and continuation beyond Grade 10.
While noting the progress made by Nagaland in transition rates, the report stressed the need for sustained policy interventions, improved infrastructure and stronger institutional support to address enrolment gaps and ensure greater participation at higher levels of schooling.
The report further stated that Nagaland has a total of 2,750 government and private schools across different grade categories in the academic year 2024-25. Of these, 1,172 schools cater to primary education (Classes 1 to 5), while 763 schools provide education from Classes 1 to 8.
The state also has 17 schools exclusively under the upper primary category covering Classes 6 to 8. At the secondary level, 470 schools offer Classes 1 to 10, while 108 schools provide education from Classes 6 to 10 and two schools are exclusively dedicated to Classes 9 and 10.
In the higher secondary category, 166 schools offer education from Classes 1 to 12, while 51 schools cover Classes 6 to 12. Only one school in the state is exclusively dedicated to higher secondary education covering Classes 9 to 12.