Parliament Question: Gross Enrolment Ratio in Higher Education

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 143 ANSWERED ON 20.07.2026 Gross Enrolment Ratio in Higher Education 143. Shri Shafi Parambil: Smt. Pratima Mondal: Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state: (a) the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in higher education during each of the last five years, category wise, including Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), minorities and women, along with the State/UT-wise GER during the said period; (b) whether the Government is on track to achieve the target of 50 per cent GER in higher education by 2035 under the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 and, if so, the details thereof, including the time-bound roadmap to expand quality higher education; (c) the measurable improvements in learning outcomes achieved since the announcement of the NEP, 2020 along with the major initiatives taken to improve access to higher education, particularly in rural and aspirational districts; and (d) the steps taken by the Government to address the shortage of qualified teachers in Government schools and higher educational institutions? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (DR. SUKANTA MAJUMDAR) (a): As per All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE), 2023-24 the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) at National Level is 30. The category-wise, Gender-wise and State/UT-wise GER from 2019-20 to 2023-24 is available in AISHE Report, 2023-24. The report can be accessed at https://aishe.gov.in/aishe-final-report/ (b): National Education Policy envisage to achieve 50 percent GER in Higher Education by the year 2035. As per All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE), 2023-24 Gross Enrolment ratio is 30 at national level.(c) As per AISHE, Enrolment in higher education has risen from 3.42 crore in 2014-15 to 4.5 crore in 2023-24 (an increase of 31.5%). Overall GER has improved from 23.7 in 2014-15 to 30 in 2023-24. To cater to needs of educationally unserved/ underserved areas, the Ministry of Education has been implementing the Pradhan Mantri Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (PM- USHA) scheme, which envisages improvement in access, equity and excellence in State Higher Education system through support under various components viz., Multi- Disciplinary Education and Research Universities (MERU), Grants to Strengthen Universities (Accredited & Unaccredited Universities), Grants to Strengthen Colleges (Accredited & Unaccredited Colleges), New Model Degree Colleges and Gender Inclusion and Equity Initiatives. The government has launched the third phase of Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) in June 2023 in the form of Pradhan Mantri Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (PM-USHA) with an outlay of Rs. 12926.10 crore, including the committed liabilities of the earlier phase of RUSA, for the period 2023-24 to 2025-26, to cater to the needs of educationally unserved/ underserved areas. Under the scheme, 613 units have been approved with a total amount of Rs.8,168.51 crore. Union Cabinet in its meeting held in May, 2025 has approved expansion of academic and infrastructure capacity including creation of Research Park of five new IITs which had been established in the State/UT of Andhra Pradesh (IIT Tirupati), Kerala (IIT Palakkad), Chhattisgarh (IIT Bhilai), Jammu & Kashmir (IIT Jammu) and Karnataka (IIT Dharwad) with a total outlay of Rs. 11,828.79 crore. The government has also approved a total of Rs. 1,942 Crore for expansion of academic & hostel infrastructure, and development of Research Park for IIT Jodhpur, IIT Patna and IIT Indore through Higher Education Financing Agency (HEFA). (d): Education is a subject in the concurrent list of the Constitution and majority of the schools and teachers in the country are under the administrative control of the State Governments and UT Administrations. The recruitment, service conditions and rational deployment of teachers come under the purview of the respective State Governments/UT Administrations. Recruitment is a continuous process and vacancies arise due to a number of factors like retirement, resignation, increased requirement of teachers because of the enhanced students’ strength etc. The Central Government through the Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Samagra Shiksha, provides financial assistance to the States and UTs to maintain appropriate Pupil- Teacher Ratio (PTR) for various levels of schooling, as per norms prescribed in the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, as amended from time to time. The recruitment, service conditions and rational deployment of teachers come under the purview of the respective State governments/UT administrations. In order to ensure quality, the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) has laid down minimumqualification for a person to be eligible for appointment as a teacher. The Government periodically advises States/UTs to fill vacant posts of teachers, to ensure timely recruitment of teachers by adopting a transparent and merit-based process through autonomous teacher recruitment boards or similar organisations. With a view to collecting real-time data from schools, Government of India has developed the Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) from the year 2018-19. As per the data reported by States/ UTs in UDISE+ 2025-26, the number of teachers in position in government schools is 51,34,623. The Central Higher Education Institutions (CHEIs) under Ministry of Education including Central Universities, IITs, NITs are statutory autonomous organizations established under respective Central Acts of Parliament and governed by provisions of the Acts/Statutes/Ordinances/Regulations made thereunder. As autonomous institutions, faculty recruitment is done within the institutions itself, in accordance with their Acts and Regulations. The recruitment powers vests with the respective Board of Governors/Executive Committee/Board of Management. In Centrally financed Higher Education Institutions, measures have been taken to attract quality faculties which includes year-round open advertisements, recruitment through search-cum- selection procedures, special recruitment drive, mission mode recruitment and invitation to alumni/scientists/faculty, etc. The faculty recruitment processes are carried out by the CHEIs by inviting applications in a transparent manner, as part of a multi-step and robust screening process. The Acts and Statutes of various institutions specify the composition of selection committees, authorities responsible for recruitment of various levels of faculty, provision of independent subject experts and Visitor’s nominees etc. so as to ensure transparency and academic rigour in recruitments. In August, 2021, all Central Higher Educational Institutions (CHEIs) under Ministry of Education were requested to undertake special drive to fill backlog vacancies in their institutions in Mission Mode. The CHEIs undertook special recruitment drives to fill the vacancies including of Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs). In September 2022, Ministry of Education had also exhorted all the CHEIs to fill up the vacancies in Mission Mode. In October 2025, all the CHEIs have again been requested to fill up all the backlog vacancies in Mission Mode. From September 2022, all CHEIs have undertaken Mission Mode recruitment drive to fill the vacancies. Up to 23.05.2026 (i.e. the date of last Rozgar Mela), a total number of 32114 posts have been filled up by all CHEIs, including 18757 faculty positions, in Mission Mode. As per All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE), 2023-24, the total number of teachers in Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) registered on AISHE is 17,32,294. *****