New Delhi, Aug 29: The Ministry of Education released the Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) report for the academic year 2024–25, revealing significant progress in teacher strength and student retention across the country.

According to the report, the total number of school teachers in India has reached 1,01,22,420, crossing the one crore milestone for the first time in history.

This marks a 6.7% increase from the previous year (2023–24), which recorded 98,07,600 teachers, and a substantial rise from 94,83,294 in 2022–23.

The Ministry attributes this growth to ongoing efforts to improve the pupil-teacher ratio, which now stands at:
- 10:1 at the foundational level
- 13:1 at the preparatory level
- 17:1 at the middle level
- 21:1 at the secondary level
These figures are well within the National Education Policy’s recommended ratio of 30:1.

The report also highlights a consistent reduction in student dropout rates over the past three academic years:
- Preparatory Level: Dropped from 8.7% in 2022–23 to 3.7% in 2023–24, and further to 2.3% in 2024–25
- Middle Level: Declined from 8.1% to 5.2%, and now stands at 3.5%

The Ministry emphasized that these achievements are part of a broader strategy to ensure equitable access to quality education and reduce regional disparities in school infrastructure and staffing.