Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: Union education ministry will launch a nationwide drive to identify and enrol out-of-school and dropout children through the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), as part of efforts to achieve 100% gross enrolment ratio (GER) from pre-school to secondary level by 2030.Data from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) 2023-24 shows nearly 2 crore children in the 14-18 age group are not attending school. Around 11% of children in Classes III to VIII remain out of school, while over 50 lakh students fail board examinations each year.Officials of the department of school education and literacy said open schooling will be used to bring such children back into the education system, especially those unable to attend regular schools due to economic, social or geographical reasons. NIOS offers flexible admissions, multiple attempts to clear exams, on-demand examinations and vocational courses, with certification recognised at par with other boards.The ministry will work with states and UTs to identify out-of-school children using district-level survey data and enrol them through targeted outreach. A programme titled “NIOS Mitra” will be introduced to support this effort. Trained facilitators will identify children, counsel families and assist with enrolment and academic guidance, with a focus on marginalised and disadvantaged groups.To improve access, the ministry plans to expand the network of NIOS centres. At present, NIOS operates over 10,800 study and examination centres across the country. The government aims to establish at least one centre in every block.PM SHRI schools, Kendriya Vidyalayas, Navodaya Vidyalayas and government senior secondary schools will be used as NIOS centres to support enrolment and examinations.
