**Executive Summary**
This document summarises the response to Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 90, answered on December 1, 2025, regarding the closure of government schools in undivided Koraput. It details the number of schools merged, teacher vacancies, student enrollment, population density, and average distance to schools. The data is sourced from the State Government of Odisha and UDISE+ 2024-25.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **School Mergers:**
* 686 government schools were merged in undivided Koraput (Koraput, Malkanagiri, Nawarangpur, Rayagada) as per the policy of rationalisation and consolidation of schools.
* Block-wise details of merged schools are provided in Annexure - I.
* **Teacher Vacancies:**
* There are 3 one-teacher schools in undivided Koraput.
* Total teacher vacancy in these schools under the School & Mass Education Department is 3.
* **Student Enrollment:**
* 8545 students, including SC/ST and girl students, were enrolled at the time of school closures/mergers.
* Students from merged/closed schools are enrolled in nearby schools.
* **Population Density:**
* Population density in undivided Koraput is as follows:
* Koraput: 157/sq km
* Malkangiri: 106/sq km
* Nawarangpur: 231/sq km
* Rayagada: 137/sq km
* **School-Age Population:**
* Block-wise school-age population as per UDISE+ 2024-25 is detailed in Annexure-II.
* **Distance Norms:**
* As per the RTE Act, 2009, distance norms are 1 km for classes I-V and 3 km for classes VI-VIII.
* As per Samagra Shiksha norms, the distance for secondary school is 5 km and for senior secondary is 7-10 km.
**Impact Analysis**
**Stakeholders:**
* **Students**
**Impact:**
* Enrolment has been affected by the closures/mergers of schools.
**Action Required:**
* No action is explicitly stated in the document. However, implicitly, the document is saying that students from merged/closed schools are enrolled in nearby schools.
* **Teachers**
**Impact:**
* Some teachers may need to relocate due to school mergers and closures
**Action Required:**
* No action is explicitly stated in the document.
* **State Government of Odisha**
**Impact:**
* Responsible for implementing the policy of rationalisation and consolidation of schools.
**Action Required:**
* No action is explicitly stated in the document.
* **Ministry of Education**
**Impact:**
* Monitors the implementation of education policies and ensures compliance with RTE Act norms.
**Action Required:**
* No action is explicitly stated in the document.
Key Entities Referenced
Koraput: Undivided Koraput district (includes present-day Koraput, Malkanagiri, Nawarangpur, Rayagada), Odisha - the geographical area directly affected by the policy of school closures and mergers.
RTE Act, 2009, Section 6: Right to Education Act, 2009, specifically Section 6, which defines the area or limits of neighborhood with distance norms for schools.
Ministry of Education: The central ministry responsible for answering questions about the school closures and mergers.
Samagra Shiksha: National scheme norms providing distance guidelines for Secondary and Senior Secondary schools, relevant to school mergers and rationalisation.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION AND LITERACY
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO- 90
ANSWERED ON- 01/12/2025
Closure of Government School in Koraput
90. Shri Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka:
Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:
(a) the number of Government and Government-aided schools in undivided Koraput’s Scheduled
Areas in the State of that have been closed, merged, or are non-functional during the last five years,
block-wise;
(b) the number of one-teacher schools and teacher vacancies therein;
(c) the details of enrolment affected by such closures/mergers, including SC/ST and girl students;
(d) the details of population density, settlement dispersion, and school-age population by block/GP in
these areas; and
(e) the details of the average distance to nearest primary, upper-primary, secondary, and senior-
secondary schools?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
(SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY)
(a) to (e) Education is in the Concurrent List of the Constitution and majority of the schools come
under the purview of the respective State and UT Government. As informed by State Govt. of Odisha,
total 686 Govt schools (satellite schools) have been merged with the lead Govt schools in Undivided
Koraput (i.e. Koraput, Malkanagiri, Nawarangpur,Rayagada) as per the policy of rationalisation and
consolidation of schools. Block wise details is at Annexure – I.
As per UDISE+2024-25, the number of one-teacher schools in undivided Koraput district is 3. Total
teacher vacancy in these 3 Govt. schools of School & Mass Education Department is 3 (three).
Total number of students enrolled at the time of closure/ merger of the schools is 8545 including SC/ST
and girl students. Students of merged/closed schools (during merger/closure) are enrolled in near by
school.
The Population Density of Undivided Koraput (i.e. Koraput, Malkanagiri, Nawarangpur,Rayagada) is
as under:
• Koraput - 157 /sq km
• Malkangiri - 106 /sq km
• Nawarangpur - 231/sq km
• Rayagada - 137/sq km
Block wise school age population as per UDISE+ 2024-25 is at Annexure-II.
As per Section 6 of the RTE Act, 2009, the Central Government has notified the area or limits of
neighbourhood, which provides the distance norms of one kilometer for children in classes I-V, and
three kilometers for children in classes VI-VIII. Further, as per the Samagra Shiksha norms, the
distance for Secondary school is 5 kilometer and for Senior secondary is 7-10 kilometer.
*****Annexure-I
ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN PART (a) to (e) OF THE REPLY TO LOK SABHA UNSTARRED
QUESTION NO. 90 FOR ANSWERED ON 1.12.2025 ASKED BY SHRI SAPTAGIRI SANKAR ULAKA
REGARDING CLOSURE OF GOVERNMENT SCHOOL IN KORAPUT.
Block-wise List of Merged Schools in undivided Koraput District
Sl Name of District Name of Block Total no. of schools
No
1 Bandhugam 31
2 Boipariguda 24
3 Borigumma 14
4 Dasmantpur 46
5 Jeypore 3
6 Jeypore Mpl 2
7 Koraput 13
8 Koraput Nac 3
9 Kotpad 18
10 Kotpad Nac 2
Koraput
11 Kundra 6
12 Lamtaput 35
13 Laxmipur 23
14 Nandapur 22
15 Narayanapatna 29
16 Pottangi 30
17 Semiliguda 41
18 Sunabeda Nac 4
19 Bissamcuttack 5
20 Chandrapur 9
21 Gudari 12
22 Gudari Nac 1
23 Gunupur 4
24 Gunupur Nac 2
25 K.Singpur 15
Rayagada
26 Kasipur 11
27 Kolnara 13
28 Muniguda 13
29 Padampur 4
30 Ramanaguda 16
31 Rayagada 16
32 Kalimela 27
33 Khairput 5
34 Korukonda 15
35 Kudumulugumma 5
36 Malkangiri Malkangiri 7
37 Malkangiri Municipality 1
38 Mathili 9
39 Podia 16
40 Chandahandi 12
41 Dabugam 3
42 Jharigam 20
43 Kosagumuda 14
44 Nabarangpur 9
45 N abarangpur Nabarangpur Mpl 2
46 Nandahandi 15
47 Papadahandi 14
48 Raighar 22
49 Tentulikhunti 13
50 Umerkote 6
51 Umerkote Mpl 4
TOTAL 51 686Annexure-II
ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN PART (a) to (e) OF THE REPLY TO LOK SABHA UNSTARRED
QUESTION NO. 90 FOR ANSWERED ON 1.12.2025 ASKED BY SHRI SAPTAGIRI SANKAR ULAKA
REGARDING CLOSURE OF GOVERNMENT SCHOOL IN KORAPUT.
Block-wise Enrolment in Govt. and Govt. Aided Schools as per Age
DISTRICT BLOCK <6 6 TO 10 11 TO 14 TO 16 TO >18 GRAND
AGE AGE 13 AGE 15 AGE 18 AGE AGE TOTAL
Bandhugam 441 5515 2991 1180 577 242 10946
Boipariguda 809 10969 5330 2292 758 129 20287
Borigumma 1260 15242 8324 3657 1342 197 30022
Dasmantpur 652 8157 3642 1841 785 223 15300
Jeypore 1925 18197 11589 5966 2955 394 41026
Koraput 1131 11533 7497 4931 3043 606 28741
Kotpad 1094 10302 5938 2727 970 241 21272
Koraput
Kundra 653 7780 5025 2525 1137 213 17333
Lamtaput 463 5082 2936 1845 637 123 11086
Laxmipur 482 6251 3940 2235 1243 467 14618
Nandapur 711 8331 4842 2867 1433 314 18498
Narayanapatna 363 4677 2566 1011 338 79 9034
Pottangi 565 7060 4133 2078 869 231 14936
Semiliguda 1175 11759 7421 4114 2366 555 27390
Koraput Total 11724 130855 76174 39269 18453 4014 280489
Chitrakonda 596 6703 3581 1372 517 279 13048
Kalimela 1466 12813 8161 3551 1697 403 28091
Khairput 645 6607 4104 2194 1469 375 15394
Malkangiri Korukonda 850 8151 5230 2322 941 231 17725
Malkangiri 1585 15482 10636 5212 2842 552 36309
Mathili 1087 10033 6141 2903 1607 529 22300
Podia 434 3816 3123 1365 576 173 9487
Malkangiri Total 6663 63605 40976 18919 9649 2542 142354
Chandahandi 936 7764 4655 2462 1132 249 17198
Dabugam 943 7508 3980 2227 944 225 15827
Jharigam 1221 16895 9076 5509 2117 394 35212
Kosagumuda 1733 16128 9201 4543 1689 428 33722
Nabarangpur 1066 12050 7709 3923 1548 332 26628
Nabarangpur Nandahandi 692 5979 3616 2100 1164 235 13786
Papadahandi 1778 14890 8179 3940 1311 260 30358
Raighar 2744 18608 10749 5078 1966 401 39546
Tentulikhunti 902 8780 5327 2628 828 142 18607
Umerkote 2005 21056 11249 6071 2610 396 43387
Nabarangpur Total 14020 129658 73741 38481 15309 3062 274271
Bissamcuttack 964 8706 4626 2377 1381 351 18405
Chandrapur 247 3207 2083 934 319 124 6914
Gudari 508 4474 2071 969 395 30 8447
Gunupur 889 8480 5684 3601 2486 431 21571
K.Singpur 906 6411 3461 1735 639 128 13280
Raya gada Kasipur 1352 13830 6730 2978 1187 290 26367
Kolnara 969 6749 3867 1831 843 235 14494
Muniguda 897 10074 4705 2186 1029 227 19118
Padampur 641 5791 3067 1685 971 206 12361
Ramanaguda 377 4511 2255 1238 567 189 9137
Rayagada 2170 18153 10958 5728 3292 726 41027
Rayagada Total 9920 90386 49507 25262 13109 2937 191121
Grand Total 42327 414504 240398 121931 56520 12555 888235