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The number of government schools in Telangana reached their highest number in eight years with 30,057 functioning schools, according to the latest data from Unified District Information System for Education Plus. UDISE is a national data tracking programme under the Department of School Education & Literacy, Ministry of Education under the Government of India. The numbers show a 2% increase from 29,427 schools in 2016-17. In the same period, the number of schools in the private sector dropped marginally from 12,573 to 12,474, showing a .7% drop. Recently, a government school was inaugurated after it was refurbished at a cost of ₹7.7 crore in the Irram Manzil area showing the possibilities about how schools can be. Nearly 81.21% of schools in Telangana had computers in classrooms as against the national average of 64.7%. However, the schools lagged with 63.28% having Internet access as against the national average of 63.5%, indicating a digital divide that persists despite increased use of mobile devices across all sections of the society. The State government has increased the number of schools and is also employing more teachers with 1,54,956 in 2024-25 as against 1,33,124 in 2016-17, marking a 16% increase. This is outmatched by the private sector where the number of teachers employed has surged by 90% from 1,04,853 to 1,99,734. The State saw a 13% increase in student enrollments from 65,73,100 to 74,57,851. However, a majority of the students gravitated to private schools. Private school enrollments went up from 35,13,147 to 47,52,424 which is a 35% jump. In contrast, government schools saw a -8.9% drop in enrollments from 28,88,637 in 2016-17 to 26,29,488. The drop is more precipitative when the enrollment in the Covid years is considered. In 2021-22, the number of students on the rolls in government schools reached a high of 33,03,699 as Covid-19 pandemic created an economic downturn and budget schools in the private sector shut down as parents could not pay fees. On the plus side, Telangana had a 100% Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) at the primary level, reflecting near-universal access to elementary education. The GER stood at 92.6% at upper primary, 75.3% at secondary, and 49% at higher secondary levels. Telangana also has a better Pupil–Teacher Ratio (PTR) with 20 students per teacher at primary, 17 at upper primary, and 15 at secondary levels, ensuring manageable classroom sizes and improved attention to students.
