New Delhi, October 7
Northern and eastern states continue to post low gross enrolment rates (GERs) at the secondary school level as compared to their southern and western counterparts, a recent World Bank study showed.

The report reveals grim overall GERs for Bihar (21 per cent), Rajasthan (43 per cent), Chhattisgarh (44 per cent), Uttar Pradesh 49 per cent, and even Haryana and Punjab, which have only about 50 per cent GERs at lower secondary level and lesser enrolments of 32 and 28 per cent, respectively, at upper secondary level. Rajasthan has just 21 per cent GER in classes XI and XII.

In contrast, the southern and western states fared better with many states now relying on the public-private partnership (PPP) model to expand secondary education. Kerala leads with the highest GER of 92 per cent at secondary level, followed by Tamil Nadu at 80 per cent, Goa at 76, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh at 69, 56 and 52 per cent enrolments, respectively.

The only exception among northern states is Uttarakhand with 77 GER in classes IX and X, though the percentage declines to 39 in senior secondary classes.

Moreover, the existing gender inequity is quite visible in the northern states. In Rajasthan, percentage gap between boys and girls enrolling in secondary school is at its highest at 30, followed by Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh where the gap is 23 and 21 per cent, respectively.

In higher secondary education too, Rajasthan fares badly with gender inequity percentage gap being 16. Orissa follows with 25 per cent.

Kerala remains the only state with more girls than boys attending both secondary and upper secondary school; Punjab surprisingly has more girls than boys attending classes IX and X (despite its low sex ratio reputation). Tamil Nadu has more girls than boys at upper secondary level.