- Why in news
- On 30 August 2026, PIB published a note on India's higher education sector. It uses AISHE data to show a decade of change from 2014-15 to 2023-24.
- What it is
- The All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) is an annual survey of higher education institutions run by the Ministry of Education. It collects data on institutions, students, teachers and infrastructure. It is used to track GER, gender and social-group participation, and progress under NEP 2020.
- Who runs it
- The Ministry of Education conducts AISHE every year.
- Gender Parity Index
- GPI is the ratio of female GER to male GER. It rose from 0.92 to 1.08, so it now favours females.
- Social groups
- OBC share of enrolment rose from 32.8% to 40.1%, the largest rise among social categories.
Don’t confuse with GER vs GPI: GER is enrolled students as a share of the eligible age group. GPI is female GER divided by male GER.
Don’t confuse with Enrolment vs out-turn: Enrolment counts students enrolled. Out-turn counts students who pass out in a year.
Reports and indices: 14 Prelims questions since 2013; they test who publishes a report and what it measures.
Why it matters
- AISHE gives the evidence base to track NEP 2020 goals and SDG 4.
- Rising GER and a GPI above 1 show wider access and more equity.
Problems
- GER of 30% is still far from the NEP target of 50% by 2035.
- PwBD enrolment is low and shows a gender gap, with fewer females than males.
- Female teachers are still under 45% of the teaching workforce.
Way forward
- Add seats and institutions in under-served areas, with targeted support for SC, ST and PwBD learners.
- Improve quality and teacher hiring, especially of women, to match higher enrolment.
Put in your answer
Disability gap: Of 54,080 PwBD students in 2023-24, 34,080 were male and 20,000 female.
- 2020Mains GS2 · Q18Whether NEP 2020 conforms to SDG-4 and restructures India's education system
- 2020Mains GS4 · Q1Examine NEP 2020 as a tool for individual development and social transformation
- 2015Mains GS2 · Q11Whether foreign educational institutions would improve quality of higher and technical education
UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: Lasting survey on the syllabus, but the release is routine data; reports are 14 of 327 Prelims questions and rarely reach Mains.
Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.