**Executive Summary**
This document is the answer to Unstarred Question No. 1538 in the Lok Sabha, answered on February 9, 2026, regarding the internal evaluation of the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 in India. The Ministry of Education details various mechanisms and data sources used for monitoring, reviewing, and evaluating interventions related to access, equity, quality, learning outcomes, and teacher capacity. Data cited in the response covers the period until the academic year 2024-25 and mentions global rankings through 2026.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Mechanisms for Monitoring & Evaluation:**
* The Ministry of Education has implemented mechanisms for monitoring, reviewing, and evaluating interventions related to access, equity, quality, learning outcomes, and teacher capacity.
* **Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE +) 2024-25:**
* India's school education system has seen measurable improvements across key educational indicators.
* Data includes nearly 14.72 lakh schools and nearly 24.7 Crore students from Foundational to Secondary levels.
* The number of teachers increased from 98.07 lakh to 1.01 crore.
* The Pupil Teacher Ratio (PTR) improved at all levels, surpassing the NEP norm of 1:30. Ratios stand at 10 (foundational), 13 (preparatory), 17 (middle), and 21 (secondary).
* Dropout rates decreased across the Preparatory, Middle, and Secondary levels.
* Student retention improved across all levels.
* Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) increased at the middle and secondary levels.
* **Performance Grading Index (PGI):**
* The Department of School Education & Literacy developed the Performance Grading Index, State (PGI) and District, a district-level assessment tool to improve school education outcomes.
* PGI combines 73 indicators from various domains of school education.
* PGI reports are accessible online.
* **PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024:**
* A survey was conducted across India on December 4, 2024, to understand baseline performance.
* Involved over 21.15 lakh students and 2.70 lakh teachers from over 74,229 schools across 781 districts.
* Report cards are available online.
* **All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE):**
* AISHE is an annual web-based data source on higher education.
* AISHE 2022–23 reports increases in the number of University / University Level Institutions and Colleges.
* Enrollment in higher education, particularly of female, SC, and ST students, has risen.
* Total STEM enrolment has increased.
* The number of faculty has also increased.
* Overall GER has improved.
* **Global Rankings:**
* India's standing in global rankings has improved, with increased representation in QS Rankings.
* India's ranking in the Global Innovation Index (GII) has improved.
* **Collaboration:**
* Education is subject of concurrent list and both Central and State governments work collaboratively.
* NEP 2020 requires careful planning, joint monitoring, and collaborative implementation.
**Impact Analysis**
**Ministry of Education**
* **Impact:** Responsible for implementing and monitoring the NEP 2020.
* **Action Required:** Continue to utilize established mechanisms and data sources for ongoing monitoring, review, and evaluation.
**State and Local Education Authorities**
* **Impact:** Responsible for implementing the NEP 2020 at the state and local levels.
* **Action Required:** Continue collaborative implementation and planning with the central government and use data from UDISE+, PGI, PARAKH, and AISHE to drive improvements.
**Schools and Higher Education Institutions**
* **Impact:** Directly affected by the policies and initiatives under NEP 2020, influencing learning outcomes, enrollment, and resources.
* **Action Required:** Implement changes and improvements to align with NEP 2020 guidelines.
**Students and Teachers**
* **Impact:** Directly impacted by changes in curriculum, teaching methods, and access to resources.
* **Action Required:** Adapt to new educational standards and participate in initiatives aimed at improving learning outcomes.
Key Entities Referenced
National Education Policy (NEP) 2020: The central policy document being evaluated for implementation in school and higher education sectors.
Ministry of Education: The primary ministry responsible for monitoring, reviewing, and evaluating the implementation of NEP 2020.
Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE +): A system used for data collection and reporting on school education, providing key educational indicators for evaluation.
Performance Grading Index, State (PGI): A tool developed by the Department of School Education & Literacy to assess and grade the performance of states in school education.
PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024: A nationwide survey conducted to assess learning competencies among students at various grade levels.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1538
ANSWERED ON 09.02.2026
Internal Evaluation of the Implementation of National Education Policy
1538. Shri Kali Charan Singh:
Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:
(a) whether any outcome-based, third-party or internal evaluation of the implementation of the
National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 has been undertaken in school and higher education
sectors, if so, the details thereof;
(b) the indicators and benchmarks used to assess learning outcomes, access, equity, quality,
teacher capacity and institutional performance;
(c) the details of inter-State, inter-district and inter-institutional variations observed in such
assessment;
(d) the details of corrective or course-correction measures initiated in response to the findings; and
(e) the details of institutional mechanisms established for continuous monitoring and periodic
reporting on NEP outcomes?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
(DR. SUKANTA MAJUMDAR)
(a) to (e): A number of mechanisms have been put in place by the Ministry of Education for
monitoring, review and evaluation of various interventions relating to access, equity, quality,
learning outcomes and teacher capacity, as detailed below:
According to Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE +) 2024-25, India’s
school education system saw measurable improvements across key educational indicators. It has
data with nearly 14.72 lakh schools and nearly 24.7 Crore students from Foundational to
Secondary level from varied socio-economic backgrounds. The number of teachers increased from
98.07 lakh to 1.01 crore, with total 54.82 lakh female teachers, reflecting a more gender-balanced
workforce. The Pupil Teacher Ratio improved at all levels in 2024–25. The ratios now stand at 10
at the foundational level, 13 at the preparatory level, 17 at the middle level, and 21 at the secondary
level. These ratios are stronger than the NEP norm of 1:30, supporting closer attention to each
student and better learning outcomes. The academic year 2024–25 has seen a notable reduction in
dropout rates across the Preparatory (from 3.7% to 2.3%), Middle (from 5.2% to 3.5%), and
Secondary levels (from 10.9% to 8.2%) as compared to 2023-24. Student retention improved
across all levels in 2024–25. The foundational level increased from 98.0 percent to 98.9 percent.
The preparatory level increased from 85.4 percent to 92.4 percent. The middle level increasedfrom 78.0 percent to 82.8 percent. The secondary level increased from 45.6 percent to 47.2
percent. The academic year 2024–25 recorded an increase in the Gross Enrolment Ratio at the
middle and secondary levels. The middle level rose from 89.5 percent to 90.3 percent. The
secondary level rose from 66.5 percent to 68.5 percent. This growth reflects enhanced access to
education and increased student participation in higher grades.
Department of School Education & Literacy has developed Performance Grading Index, State
(PGI) by combining 73 indicators from various domains of school education viz., learning
outcomes, access outcomes, infrastructure, facilities, equity outcomes, etc. The PGI-State reports
for the year from 2017-18 to 2023-24 can be accessed at
https://pgi.udiseplus.gov.in/#/statepgi/home. Similarly, Performance Grading Index, District is a
district-level assessment tool which is used to compare and improve school education outcomes
in a decentralized manner. It covers outcomes, classroom processes, infrastructure, safety, digital
learning, and governance. The PGI-District reports for the year from 2018-19 to 2023-24 can be
accessed at https://dpgi.udiseplus.gov.in/#aboutPgi .
“PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024” was conducted across India on 04.12.2024, to
understand the baseline performance in development of competencies among the students at the
end of the Foundational, Preparatory, and Middle stages (Grades 3, 6, and 9 respectively).
Nationwide over 21.15 lakh students and 2.70 lakh teachers from more than 74,229 schools
across 781 districts from all States/UTs participated in the survey. National, State and District
level report cards for PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024 are available at
https://dashboard.parakh.ncert.gov.in/en.
In higher education, an annual web based ‘All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE)’ is a
comprehensive data source on higher education. AISHE 2022–23 (provisional) reports rise in
number of University / University Level Institutions and Colleges from 760 to 1213 and from
38498 to 46624 respectively, as compared to AISHE 2014-15. Enrolment in higher education
has risen from 3.42 crore in 2014-15 to 4.46 crore in 2022-23, with female enrolment from 1.57
crore to 2.18 crore. The enrolment of SC students is 69.13 Lakh in 2022-23 as compared to 46.07
Lakh in 2014.15. The enrolment of ST students has increased to 28.72 Lakh in 2022-23 from
16.41 Lakh in 2014-15. Total STEM enrolment stands at 99.76 lakh. Number of faculty has also
increased from 14.73 lakh in 2014-15 to 16.64 lakh in 2022-23, with number of female faculty
increased from 5.7 lakh to 7.36 lakh. Overall GER has improved from 23.7 in 2014-15 to 29.5 in
2022-23.
India’s standing in global rankings has significantly improved, with 54 Indian HEIs featured in
the QS Rankings 2026, as compared to 11 in 2015. The QS Subject Rankings for 2025 included
79 Indian HEIs, an increase of 10 from the previous year's 69. As per QS Asia ranking 2026, 294
Indian Higher Education Institutions features.
Focus of NEP on research and innovation has propelled India’s ranking in the Global Innovation
Index (GII) from 48 in 2020 and currently being ranked at 38th place in 2025.
Education is subject of concurrent list and both Central and State government work collaboratively
to ensure comprehensive, and progressive enhancement of overall quality and growth within the
education sector. NEP 2020, requires careful planning, joint monitoring, and collaborative
implementation between the Centre and States for execution of the policy.
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