Uttar Pradesh sees student enrolment decline despite新增 institutions

Student enrollment in Uttar Pradesh colleges has dropped, despite an increase in the number of institutions. In the 2024-25 academic year, around 53.3 lakh students were enrolled in traditional courses. This represents a decrease of about 1.5 lakh students from the previous year. The report from the UP higher education department shows that the number of students fell from approximately 54.8 lakh in the 2023-24 session. This decline occurred even as more private colleges and universities opened in the state. The total number of private colleges increased from 7,924 to 7,984, while private universities rose from 38 to 47. Despite the growth in institutions, enrollment numbers dropped. New private universities, like Saroj International University in Lucknow and Sharda University in Agra, began operations but did not attract more students. Amit Bhardwaj, director of higher education in UP, expressed concern over this decline. He stated that the government is committed to improving enrollment rates. Special initiatives will be launched to encourage more students to register for courses in the coming 2025-26 session.