Over 1 lakh single teacher schools in India serve 33 Lakh students: Data

Over 33 lakh students across India are studying in more than 1 lakh single-teacher schools, according to the latest data released by the Ministry of Education for the academic year 2024–25. The data highlights a significant imbalance in pupil-teacher distribution across states, with Andhra Pradesh recording the highest number of such schools and Uttar Pradesh leading in student enrolments.The report states that 1,04,125 schools across the country are being run by a single teacher, catering to 33,76,769 students — averaging about 34 students per school. The findings raise concerns over the implementation of the Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009, which mandates a pupil-teacher ratio (PTR) of 30:1 at the primary level and 35:1 at the upper primary level.
According to official data, the highest number of single-teacher schools are in Andhra Pradesh (12,912), followed by Uttar Pradesh (9,508), Jharkhand (9,172), Maharashtra (8,152), and Karnataka (7,349). Smaller regions such as Lakshadweep (7,217) and Madhya Pradesh (7,217) also figure prominently on the list. Delhi, in comparison, has only nine single-teacher schools, while Puducherry, Ladakh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, and Chandigarh have none. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands have just four such schools.When it comes to student enrolment, Uttar Pradesh tops the list with 6,24,327 students, followed by Jharkhand (4,36,480), West Bengal (2,35,494), Madhya Pradesh (2,29,095), Karnataka (2,23,142), Andhra Pradesh (1,97,113), and Rajasthan (1,72,071).
The number of single-teacher schools, however, has shown a decline of around six per cent, falling from 1,18,190 in 2022–23 to 1,10,971 in 2023–24. A senior Education Ministry official explained that the government is rationalising schools merging under-enrolled institutions and redeploying teachers to improve learning outcomes and optimise resource use.“Single-teacher schools hinder the teaching-learning process. Efforts are being made to redeploy teachers from schools with zero student enrolment to single-teacher schools to ensure optimal teacher availability,” the official said.According to information,Delhi and Chandigarh recorded the highest average student enrolment per school — at 808 and 1,222 students, respectively  indicating efficient utilisation of school infrastructure. In contrast, states like Ladakh, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and Himachal Pradesh reported lower averages, between 59 and 82 students per school.