Delhi has secured a place among the best performing States in the country and Union territories in the Union Ministry of Education’s Performance Grading Index (PGI) 2025-26. The achievement reflects the center’s strong performance on several academic indicators. However, recent evaluations also raise concerns about the decline in the number of young children and the decline in secondary school enrollment.The findings suggest that while Delhi has maintained a strong education system, important challenges remain that will affect educational outcomes in the coming years.
Delhi has been placed in one of the best performing groups
The Performance Grading Index is the Centre’s annual assessment of school performance in States and Union Territories. It measures performance using 70 indicators spanning educational outcomes, access to education, school infrastructure, equity, leadership, and teacher training.Unlike conventional rankings, PGI ranks States and UTs into categories based on their performance. For 2025-2026, Chandigarh emerged as the only State or Union Territory to reach the Uttam-3 category. Delhi has been placed in the next sports group along with Punjab, Kerala, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and Daman and Diu. No State or Union Territory managed to enter the top three grades, Utkarsh, Uttam-1, or Uttam-2.The results show that Delhi continues to perform strongly in several areas of school education despite facing challenges in student participation.
Initial enrollment shows a decline
One of the main concerns highlighted in the report is the decline in the number of students at a very young age. The Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) on a primary basis, from primary school to Class 2, decreased from 104.8 in 2023-24 to 102.8 in 2024-25.The ministry has directed Delhi to conduct a thorough review of the class-wise registration system and make better use of the data available through the Poshan Tracker, which registers children enrolled in Anganwadi centers. Officials believe this will help identify gaps before children enter school.Encouraging enrollment at the primary level is considered important because primary education plays a major role in improving long-term educational outcomes.
Higher grades show improvement
Although the enrollment was reduced in the minors, there was a change in the number of higher education. GER at the preparation level (classes III-V) was raised from 51 to 52.2. In the case of middle age (classes VI-VIII), they showed a significant increase from 106.8 to 115. There was also a slight change in the case of secondary school (classes IX-XII), where the GER increased from 91 to 91.7.However, even after such reforms, the Ministry has advised that there should be more efforts in Delhi to improve enrollment in primary and secondary schools.
Secondary retention remains a concern
The report also highlights the serious problem of keeping students in school in the final years of education. Delhi recorded 100 percent savings in primary, secondary, and secondary education. However, retention has dropped to 86 percent at the second level.The ministry said the decline is an area that needs urgent support. It has advised the government authorities to investigate in detail the reasons why students drop out of school at the time they go to secondary school.The review also shows that public school enrollment has declined over the past three years, making student retention a key policy issue.
Four districts of Delhi among the best performers
A government survey gave encouraging signs for the capital. Four districts from Delhi were among the 19 districts in India that performed best in Uttam-2 in the assessment for 2025-26.Overall, the Ministry said that 462 districts have improved compared to last year, although no district has reached the highest Utkarsh category.
Data-driven analysis
The Performance Grading Index draws information from several official databases, including UDISE+, PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024, PM POSHAN portal, PRABANDH, and Vidyanjali.According to the Ministry of Education, the purpose of the grading system is not to create competition based on rankings but to help States, Union Territories and provinces identify strengths, address weaknesses, and improve school education through evidence-based planning.(With inputs from PTI)