Delhi has secured a place among the top performing states and Union territories in the country in the Union Education Ministry’s Performance Rating Index (PGI) 2025-26. The achievement reflects the capital’s good performance in several educational indicators. However, the latest assessment also raises concerns about falling enrollment among younger children and lower retention of students in high school.The findings suggest that while Delhi has maintained a strong overall education system, significant challenges remain that could affect learning outcomes in the coming years.
Delhi was placed in one of the best performing bands
The Performance Rating Index is the Center’s annual assessment of school education in the states and Union Territories. It measures performance using 70 indicators across learning outcomes, access to education, school infrastructure, equity, governance and teacher training.Unlike conventional rankings, the PGI places States and UTs into performance categories based on their scores. For 2025-26, Chandigarh emerged as the only State or Union Territory to achieve the Uttam-3 category. Delhi was placed in the next performing band alongside Punjab, Kerala, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and Daman and Diu. No State or Union Territory managed to enter the first three grades, Utkarsh, Uttam-1 or Uttam-2.The result indicates that Delhi continues to perform well in various parameters of school education despite facing challenges in student participation.
The foundation enrollment registers a decline
One of the main concerns highlighted in the report is the decline in enrollment among younger students. The gross enrollment ratio (GER) at the foundation stage, which covers pre-school to class 2, fell from 104.8 in 2023-24 to 102.8 in 2024-25.The Ministry has advised Delhi to closely scrutinize class enrollment trends and make better use of data available through the Poshan Tracker, which tracks children enrolled in Anganwadi centres. Officials believe this could help identify gaps before children enter formal school.Strengthening enrollment at the foundation stage is considered essential because early education plays a key role in improving long-term learning outcomes.
Upper classes show improvement
Although enrollment has declined for young children, there has been an improvement in enrollment at higher education levels. The GER at preparatory level (classes III-V) rose from 51 to 52.2. In the case of middle grade (classes VI-VIII), it saw a considerable increase from 106.8 to 115. A slight improvement was also observed in the case of secondary school (classes IX-XII), where the GER went from 91 to 91.7.However, even after these improvements, the Ministry has recommended that there be more attempts by Delhi to improve enrollment at the basic and secondary levels of education.
Secondary level retention remains a concern
The report also points to a major challenge in keeping students in school during the final years of education. Delhi recorded a 100% retention rate at the initial, preparatory and intermediate stages. However, retention dropped to 86 percent at secondary level.The Ministry has qualified this decline as an area that requires immediate attention. He has advised the authorities to conduct a detailed study on the reasons why students drop out of school during the transition to secondary education.The review also notes that enrollment in government schools has declined over the past three years, making student retention a major policy priority.
Four districts of Delhi among the best
The district-level assessment offered encouraging signs for the capital. Four districts in Delhi appeared among the 19 districts across India that achieved the Uttam-2 performance grade in the 2025-26 assessment.Overall, the Ministry reported that 462 districts improved their scores compared to the previous year, although no district made it to the top Utkarsh category.
Data-driven assessment
The Performance Rating Index draws information from various official education databases such as UDISE+, PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024, PM POSHAN Portal, PRABANDH and Vidyanjali.According to the Ministry of Education, the purpose of the rating framework is not to create competition through rankings, but to help states, Union Territories and districts identify strengths, address weaknesses and improve the quality of school education through evidence-based planning.(With PTI Tickets)