Shillong, May 25: Meghalaya has secured the lowest position in the country in the latest national assessment of school education conducted by the Union Ministry of Education, highlighting deep structural challenges in the state’s education sector despite a large teacher workforce and thousands of schools.
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According to the Performance Grading Index (PGI) 2.0 report, Meghalaya scored 417.9 points out of a total of 1,000, making it the only state in India placed in the lowest “Grade 10” category among all 36 states and union territories evaluated under the assessment.
Although the state’s score improved marginally from 401.6 recorded in 2022-23, the increase was insufficient to move Meghalaya out of the bottom rank.
The PGI 2.0 assessed states across six major domains, including Learning Outcomes and Quality, Access, Infrastructure and Facilities, Equity, Governance Processes, and Teacher Education and Training.
The report showed Meghalaya lagging behind several other northeastern and economically weaker states, including Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Nagaland and Bihar.
Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma had recently acknowledged the severe challenges affecting the education sector, citing official statistics that revealed major concerns despite the state having 14,582 schools and 55,160 teachers on payroll.
Government data further indicated that nearly 22,000 students drop out of school annually across Meghalaya, raising concerns about retention and access to quality education.
One of the most alarming findings highlighted in the report was the uneven enrolment pattern across schools. While 206 schools reportedly have no students at all, another 2,269 schools are functioning with single-digit enrolment.
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The assessment also pointed to major deficiencies in school infrastructure, including inadequate sanitation facilities, poor digital connectivity and limited access to basic educational resources.
Additionally, the report flagged a shortage of trained teaching professionals and insufficient teacher training support, which continue to affect classroom quality and student learning outcomes.
The findings further showed that students studying in rural areas continue to perform significantly worse in foundational subjects compared to those in urban centres, reflecting a widening educational gap within the state.
Education experts and observers believe the report underscores the urgent need for structural reforms, better monitoring mechanisms, improved teacher training and stronger student retention programmes to address the growing crisis in Meghalaya’s education sector.
