Measures to Expand Access to Education

The PIB release notes that the dropout rate fell from 2.3% to 1.8% at the preparatory level, 3.5% to 3.6% at the middle level, and 8.2% to 7.0% at the secondary level between 2024‑25 and 2025‑26, as per UDISE+. Under centrally‑sponsored schemes such as Samagra Shiksha, STARS and PM‑SHRI, states receive financial assistance to augment school infrastructure (classrooms, toilets, water, electricity, libraries, ICT and digital classrooms). Additional schemes (KGBV, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Avasiya Vidyalayas, PM‑JANMAN, DAJGUA) support new schools, residential hostels, transport, skill education and free textbooks/uniforms. The PM eVidya programme (initiated 17 May 2020) provides 200 DTH TV and 400 radio channels for multi‑mode education, while the DIKSHA platform offers over 3.7 lakh multilingual e‑content, 450+ virtual labs and offline support for areas with limited internet.