6 hours Ago By Express News Service
VIJAYAWADA: Education in Andhra Pradesh is in crisis, with plummeting enrolment, poor learning outcomes, and inadequate infrastructure, Minister for HRD Nara Lokesh informed the Assembly on Tuesday. Presenting demands for grants in school education, higher education, skill development, and IT sectors, he criticised the previous YSRCP government for neglecting education. Displaying books and bags bearing the former CM YS Jagan’s image, Lokesh mocked his obsession with self-promotion, drawing laughter in the House.
According to his detailed report, the State’s 58,535 schools serve 68.15 lakh students, yet education remains fragmented. There are 12,512 single-teacher schools and 14,052 government schools with fewer than 20 students.
Enrolment in government schools fell by 10.49 lakh between 2022-24, leaving 33.37 lakh students.
Foundational literacy has weakened, with only 37.5% of Grade 5 students able to read Grade 2 Telugu in 2024, down from 57.1% in 2018, per Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) reports.
Andhra Pradesh’s ranking in Class III Language dropped from first in 2017 to 27th in 2021, per the National Achievement Survey (NAS). Infrastructure gaps persist, only 51.8% of schools have compound walls, and Rs 7,876 crore worth of Nadu-Nedu projects remain incomplete.
Reforms such as the CBSE shift and TOEFL programme floundered due to poor execution, while GO 117 led to a student exodus. Intermediate education struggles with low pass rates (58% in 2024) and a 65.4% Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER), far behind Kerala’s 88.
1%. Polytechnics and ITIs suffer from outdated facilities. Higher education GER stands at 36.
5%, hampered by staff shortages and declining NIRF rankings. Lokesh announced the ‘Learning Excellence in Andhra Pradesh’ (LEAP) initiative under Swarnandhra 2047, aiming for a 100% GER and top NIRF rankings. Plans include recruiting 16,347 teachers, AI-driven literacy programmes, curriculum revisions, vocational training, to revamp KG to PG education.
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