Out-of-school children: Centre flags huge mismatch in Bihar, Jharkhand data & national survey
With the mismatch raising concerns about the reliability of state data, the ministry has asked these states to closely monitor the data uploaded to the portal.
New Delhi: The Union Ministry of Education has flagged significant discrepancies between the number of out-of-school children reported by Bihar and Jharkhand on the Centre's online portal and the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) survey, ThePrint has learnt.
According to the minutes reviewed by ThePrint, the ministry identified a 'large variation' in the number of Out-of-School Children (OoSC)—defined as those aged 6 to 14 years who are not enrolled in or attending any educational institution—on the PRABANDH portal, the online system used to monitor the implementation of the Samagra Shiksha scheme.
In Bihar, state data for 2023-24 showed 33,285 OoSCs on PRABANDH while the number of 'never enrolled' children recorded by the NSSO survey (2022-23) was 6,27,763.
Similarly, in Jharkhand, PRABANDH listed 37,409 OoSC in 2023-24 compared with the NSSO's (2022-23) 1,07,639.
NSSO defines 'never enrolled' children as students not attending school or any formal education institution at that point of time
'The state was advised to monitor the data uploaded on the portal by a responsible officer under the supervision of the state project directorate,' the minutes stated.
The ministry has advised other states and Union territories (UTs) to ensure effective data collection of out-of-school children and timely updates on the PRABANDH portal on bringing them to school.
Shashi Ranjan, State Project Director, Jharkhand Education Project Council, told ThePrint the state was investigating the reason behind the data mismatch.
'We are trying to find out how this gap has been reported because we conduct household surveys. We will also coordinate with the NSSO to understand their methodology. However, our process is very meticulous,' he said.
He said the education department in Jharkhand conducts door-to-door surveys annually to identify the number of out-of-school children, and the data is updated on the PRABANDH portal.
ThePrint reached Bihar Education Department Secretary Ajay Yadav via multiple calls or messages. This report will be updated if and when a response is received.
Meanwhile, a Bihar Education Department official told ThePrint on condition of anonymity that they are also looking to ascertain the cause of the discrepancy.
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Teaching posts lying vacant across various states
According to the minutes, the ministry also flagged widespread vacancies in teaching posts across various states.
Bihar reported 'significant' teacher vacancies, with 208,784 at the elementary level, 36,035 at the secondary level and 33,035 at the senior secondary level.
According to the minutes, the state indicated that recruitment is underway, with around 80,000 posts to be filled through the state public service commission and 'plans for further recruitment to follow'.
In Haryana, the ministry flagged 7,626 teacher vacancies in elementary schools, 4,070 in secondary schools and 3,847 in senior secondary schools.
Madhya Pradesh had 47,122 teacher vacancies in elementary schools, 2,877 in secondary schools and 2,020 in senior secondary schools.
Similarly, Punjab had 6,423 vacant teaching posts across the state, including 1,546 at the elementary level, 961 at the secondary level and 3,916 at the senior secondary level.
According to the minutes, the states were advised to fill the teacher vacancies by December 2025.
Besides, in Maharashtra, the ministry flagged 8,254 vacancies in elementary school teachers, 660 in secondary school teachers and 65 in senior secondary school teachers.
'The state has informed that it has started the recruitment process and has advertised the vacancies. lt will fill the vacant positions within a period of three months,' the minutes stated.
Kerala came in for praise by the ministry for 'filling up all sanctioned posts of teachers in all schools'.
(Edited by Sugita Katyal)
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