Education in Punjab, India

Punjab has a long history of education.

History

During the rule of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, funding was given by the royal court to the schools affiliated to the various religious communities. Schools for girls were also opened in many places. Near the end of his rule in the 1830s, Ranjit Singh also started to encourage the learning of English, for which a Christian teacher was hired in a school in Lahore.[1]

The first printing press in Punjab using Gurmukhi script was established in Ludhiana in 1835 by a Christian mission. The first Punjabi dictionary was published in 1854 by Reverend J. Newton.[2] Missionary schools were established in Jalandhar (1848), Ludhiana (1851) and Amritsar (1853). Following the example of the missionaries government soon started establishing primary schools in cities and large towns and the district officers opened and started maintaining schools with local funds in minor areas. The subjects taught in these schools included English, Geometry, Geography and Persian, Arabic and Urdu languages.[3] Starting from late 1877, Punjabi became one of the languages in which students could be examined at Punjab University.[4]

Khalsa College was founded in 1892 in Amritsar.[5] In 1962, Punjab Agricultural University was established in Ludhiana and Punjabi University in Patiala.[6][7] On November 24, 1969, Guru Nanak Dev University was established in Amritsar.[8]

Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan was started in 2000s by the government of India to provide free and compulsory education to the children from 6 to 14 years of age.[9]

In August 2024, Punjab government announced that it is planning to start a new project called "Schools of happiness". According to the sources, it aims to "create a nurturing and joyful learning environment in the schools by upgrading infrastructure, enhancing facilities, and integrating a holistic approach to education".[10][11]

Primary and secondary education

The Indian government lays emphasis on the primary education up to the age of fourteen years, referred to as elementary education in India. It has been a fundamental right enlisted in the constitution of the country under Article 21-A up till the age of 14 years. The Indian government has banned child labour and guarantees free and compulsory education up to age 14 under Article 21-A and the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009.[12] Recent state data replace the older national statistic above. As per the Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) 2024–25, Punjab has 27,281 recognised schools: 19,243 government schools (≈70.6%), 7,589 private unaided schools (≈27.8%), and 437 government-aided schools. UDISE+ also reports 26.69 lakh students enrolled in government schools and 30.63 lakh in private unaided schools for 2024–25, indicating a shift toward higher private-school enrolment in the state.[13]

However, due to a shortage of resources and lack of political will, this system suffers from massive gaps including high pupil to teacher ratios, shortage of infrastructure and poor levels of teacher training. Nationwide teacher numbers have changed substantially since 2011. According to UDISE+ 2024-25, the total number of teachers in India exceeded 1,01,22,420 in 2024-25, an increase from about 98.1 lakh the previous year.[14] At the state level, UDISE+ 2024-25 reports 2,73,130 teachers in Punjab (a marginal change from 2,73,092 in 2023-24) giving the state an overall pupil–teacher ratio of 22.[15] Education has also been made free[16] for children for 6 to 14 years of age or up to class VIII under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act 2009.[17]

There have been several efforts to enhance quality made by the government. The District Education Revitalization Programme (DERP) was launched in 1994 with an aim to universalize primary education in India by reforming and vitalizing the existing primary education system.[18] 85% of the DERP was funded by the central government and the remaining 15 percent was funded by the states.[18] The DERP, which had opened 160000 new schools including 84000 alternative education schools delivering alternative education to approximately 3.5 million children, was also supported by UNICEF and other international programmes.[18]

This primary education scheme has also shown a high Gross Enrollment Ratio of 93–95% for the last three years in some states.[18] Significant improvement in staffing and enrollment of girls has also been made as a part of this scheme.[18] The current scheme for universalization of Education for All is the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan which is one of the largest education initiatives in the world. Enrollment has been enhanced, but the levels of quality remain low.

The table below shows the district level teacher to pupil ratio from class 1 to 5 in Punjab, as of 2017.[19][20][21][22]

District-wise Teacher-Pupil Ratio of Class 1 to 5 in 2017 (As of 30 September)[19]
District Ratio
Hoshiarpur 15
Rupnagar 16
Fatehgarh Sahib 16
SAS Nagar 17
SBS Nagar 18
Gurdaspur 18
Pathankot 19
Kapurthala 20
Faridkot 20
Sri Muktsar Sahib 20
Jalandhar 21
Sangrur 21
Patiala 22
Ludhiana 24
Bathinda 24
Barnala 26
Fazilka 27
Amritsar 30
Ferozpur 30
Mansa 30
Moga 31
Taran taran 46

Secondary education

The National Policy on Education (NPE), 1986, has provided for environment awareness, science and technology education, and introduction of traditional elements such as Yoga into the Indian secondary school system.[23] Secondary education covers children aged approximately 14 to 18. In Punjab, the 2024-25 UDISE+ state profile shows the following distribution of enrolled students by level (NEP-aligned): Foundational / primary 52%, Upper primary 22%, Secondary 13%, and Higher secondary 12.2%. These figures reflect the NEP 5+3+3+4 restructuring and should be used instead of the older 2001 Census-era totals for descriptive context.[24]

A significant feature of India's secondary school system is the emphasis on inclusion of the disadvantaged sections of the society. Professionals from established institutes are often called to support in vocational training. Another feature of India's secondary school system is its emphasis on profession based vocational training to help students attain skills for finding a vocation of his/her choosing.[25] A significant new feature has been the extension of SSA to secondary education in the form of the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan.[26]

A special Integrated Education for Disabled Children (IEDC) programme was started in 1974 with a focus on primary education.[27] but which was converted into Inclusive Education at Secondary Stage[28] Another notable special programme, the Kendriya Vidyalaya project, was started for the employees of the central government of India, who are distributed throughout the country. The government started the Kendriya Vidyalaya project in 1965 to provide uniform education in institutions following the same syllabus at the same pace regardless of the location to which the employee's family has been transferred.[27]

Notable schools

  • Army Public School, Patiala[29]
  • Cambridge International school, Dasuya
  • DAV Public School, Amritsar
  • Doon International School, Amritsar
  • Doon International school, Gurdaspur
  • DPS Ludhiana
  • Government High Smart School Mauran, Barnala
  • Guru Teg Bahadur International School, Dhariwal
  • Indus World School, Ludhiana
  • Kundan Vidya Mandir Sen Sec. School, Ludhiana[30]
  • Little Flower Convent School, Dhariwal
  • Patel Memorial National College, Rajpura[31]
  • The Punjab Public School, Nabha
  • Rayat International school, SBS Nagar
  • Ryan International School, Amritsar
  • Ryan International School, Ludhiana
  • Ryan International School, Patiala
  • Shivalik Public School, Mohali
  • Small Wonders School, Mohali
  • St. Xavier's High School, Rampuraphul
  • Yadavindra Public School, Patiala
  • Yadavindra Public School, Mohali

Tertiary education

Main article: List of institutions of higher education in Punjab, India

Punjab is served by many public institutes of higher education (listed below). All the major arts, humanities, science, engineering, law, medicine, veterinary science, and business courses are offered, leading to first degrees as well as postgraduate awards. Advanced research is conducted in all major areas of excellence. Punjab Agricultural University is one of the world's leading authorities in agriculture. It was instrumental and played vital role in Punjab's Green Revolution in the 1960s-70s.

Universities

Central

State

  • Punjabi University Regional Centre for IT and Management,[36] Mohali

Private

  • Apeejay Institute of Management[37]
  • Sant Baba Bhag Singh University, Jalandhar

Deemed

Autonomous colleges in Punjab

Many colleges of Punjab have been granted autonomous status by UGC.

Technical / Professional colleges

  • Apeejay Institute of Management & Engineering Technical Campus, Jalandhar (Punjab)[37]
  • Desh Bhagat Group of Institutes, Gobindgarh, Moga, Muktsar under Desh Bhagat University
  • Global Institute of Management & Emerging Technologies, Amritsar
  • Malout institute of Management & Technology, Malout (Govt. of Punjab)
  • Malwa College of Nursing
  • Sikh Missionary College, Ludhiana
  • Sri Sukhmani Institute of Engineering & Technology, Dera Bassi(Mohali)

Other institutes

  • Aryabhatta group of institutions, Barnala[40]
  • BCM College of Education, Ludhiana
  • Council of Computer Education Research and Training, Ludhiana
  • Desh Bhagat College of Education, Bardwal (Dhuri)
  • Desh Bhagat Pt. Chetan Dev Govt. College of Education, Faridkot
  • Desh Bhagat Group of Institutes, Gobindgarh, Moga, Muktsar under Desh Bhagat University
  • Doraha college of Education, Doraha
  • GHG Khalsa College of Education, GURUSAR Sudhar
  • Govt. Bikram College of Commerce, Patiala
  • Govt. College of Education, Sector 20 Chandigarh
  • Govt. Barjinder College, Faridkot
  • Khalsa College, Patiala
  • Kings Group of Institutions, Barnala
  • Malwa College of Nursing, Kotkapura
  • Malwa Group of Institutions
  • Patel Memorial National College, Rajpura[31]
  • Regional Centre Punjabi University, Bathinda
  • SGGS Khalsa College Sector 26 Chandigarh
  • State College of Education, Patiala

Medical colleges

As of 2015, there are more than 920 MBBS and 1,070 BDS seats across Punjab.[41]

Government medical colleges

Private medical colleges

  • Chintpurni Medical College, Gurdaspur
  • Desh Bhagat School of Medical Sciences, Mandi Gobindgarh Desh Bhagat University
  • Gian Sagar Medical College & Hospital, Patiala
  • Sri Guru Ram Das Institute of Medical Sciences & Research, Sri Amritsar

Literacy Rate

The table below shows the literacy rate of urban and rural areas of Punjab, through the years.

Literacy rate of urban and rural areas of Punjab through the years[43]
Year Rural Urban
2011 71.40% 83.20%
2001 64.72% 79.10%
1991 52.77% 72.08%
1981 35.21% 55.63%
1971 27.81% 52.49%
1961 20.42% 47.82%

The table below shows the gender wise literacy rate of rural and urban areas of Punjab through the years.

Gender wise literacy rate of rural and urban areas of Punjab through the years[43]
Year Female (Rural) Male (Rural) Female (Urban) Male (Urban)
2011 65.70% 76.60% 79.20% 86.70%
2001 57.75% 71.05% 74.49% 83.05%
1991 43.85% 60.71% 66.10% 77.30%
1981 27.63% 41.91% 49.70% 60.70%
1971 19.88% 34.69% 45.40% 58.60%
1961 11.51% 28.12% 37.70% 56.09%

Effects

A study of data from 1,520 households collected from 2008 to 2010 in Punjab showed that their standard of living and per capita income is positively correlated with education level at household and individual level. This implied that improvement in educational attainments reduces the chances of being poor.[44]

Statistics

The table below shows the district level teacher to pupil ratio from class 1 to 5 in Punjab, as of 2017.[19][20][21][22]

District-wise Teacher-Pupil Ratio of Class 1 to 5 in 2017 (As of 30 September)[19]
Sr. No. District Ratio
1 Hoshiarpur 15
2 Rupnagar 16
3 Fatehgarh Sahib 16
4 SAS Nagar 17
5 SBS Nagar 18
6 Gurdaspur 18
7 Pathankot 19
8 Kapurthala 20
9 Faridkot 20
10 Sri Muktsar Sahib 20
11 Jalandhar 21
12 Sangrur 21
13 Patiala 22
14 Ludhiana 24
15 Bathinda 24
16 Barnala 26
17 Fazilka 27
18 Amritsar 30
19 Ferozpur 30
20 Mansa 30
21 Moga 31
22 Taran taran 46

The table below shows the average population per school in each district of Punjab, as of 2011 census and the total number of schools, as of 2017. This includes government schools, affiliated schools, recognised and aided schools.[45] Note:- Pathankot and Fazilka were part of Gurdaspur and Ferozepur respectively, before 2011, so separate data for them regarding the average population per school is not available.

District-wise average price per school as of 2011 census and total number of schools as of 2017[45]
Sr. No. District Average population per school (2011) Total number of schools (2017)
1 SBS Nagar 2,251 272
2 Kapurthala 2,433 335
3 Fatehgarh Sahib 2,480 242
4 Gurdaspur 2,582 637
Pathankot ---- 193
5 Hoshiarpur 2,584 614
6 Moga 2,613 381
7 Faridkot 2,616 236
8 Rupnagar 2,706 253
9 Sangrur 2,908 569
10 Sri Muktsar Sahib 2,918 309
11 Mansa 2,937 262
12 Ferozpur 3,023 419
Fazilka ---- 252
13 Patiala 3,251 583
14 Barnala 3,403 175
15 Jalandhar 3,476 631
16 Bathinda 3,533 393
17 Amritsar 3,722 669
18 Ludhiana 3,770 928
19 SAS Nagar 3,812 261
20 Taran taran 4,373 372

The table below shows the percentage of households with computer and internet facility in Punjab from July 2017 to June 2018.

Percentage of households in Punjab with computer and internet facility in 2017-18[46]
Facility Total Rural Urban
Computer 16.2% 9.4% 26.7%
Internet 46.4% 39.4% 57.1%

The table below shows the percentage of people in Punjab above the age of 5 with the ability to operate computer and internet, from July 2017 to June 2018.

Percentage of people in Punjab above the age of 5 with the ability to operate computer and internet in 2017-18[47]
Group Computer Internet
Total 26.6% 35.0%
Total (Female) 22.5% 28.4%
Total (Male) 30.1% 40.9%
Rural (Total) 20.8% 28.5%
Rural (Female) 17.2% 22.1%
Rural (Male) 24.0% 34.3%
Urban (Total) 37.1% 46.8%
Urban (Female) 32.4% 40.0%
Urban (Male) 41.0% 52.6%

Notable people

See also

References

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