How Manipur achieved zero dropout in Class 10th

Manipur has achieved a zero dropout rate for the year 2021-22 at Class 10. This fact has come to light after Union Minister of Education, Dharmendra Pradhan gave out details of dropouts of Class 10 among various states, in a written reply at the ongoing Lok Sabha session. 

A list of data from the last four years since 2018 had been provided by Pradhan in which it was revealed that Manipur has achieved a zero dropout rate in the Class 10 for the year 2021-22, a feat that hints at the vastly improved education scenario in the state. 

Noteworthy is prior to this, in the year 2018-19, the dropout rate for Class 10 was 20.5 per cent, in 2019-20 the dropout rate was 14.82 per cent and in the year 2020-21 the dropout rate was 16.2 per cent. 

Speaking about this achievement, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh told India Today NE that the two flagship initiatives of School Fagathansi and Lairik Tamhanlasi, that were launched in 2019, are to be credited.

“This success is the result of the two flagship initiatives of Manipur government—School Fagathansi and Lairik Tamhanlasi—launched in 2019, a year after the first BJP government came to power in the state. While certain initiatives in states like Delhi get more media attention, our government in Manipur has been silently working towards improving the quality of education in government-run schools. The results are there to see,” says N. Biren Singh, Chief Minister of Manipur.

School Fagathansi Mission is aimed at converting one government school in each of the 60 assembly constituencies in Manipur to an ideal school. The schools are provided with all necessary fund and infrastructure, including human resources to improve the quality of education. The learning outcomes are also monitored. 

“Because of scarcity of fund, we initially chose only one school in each constituency. Gradually the numbers will be increased,” says Biren Singh.

Currently, 180 schools have been included under this scheme. Student enrolment in government schools covered under the School Fagathansi Mission are gradually increasing over the years. In 2019, total enrolment in these schools was 38,379. It increased to 47,587 in 2022, up by 24 per cent.

Meanwhile, Lairik Tamhanlasi is aimed at bringing back students who dropped out of school for various reasons, including financial crisis.

In the Lairik Tamhanlasi scheme, apart from providing free textbook and uniform, the government facilitates free remedial coaching and bridge course to children who had been out of school owing to poor academic performance. The government also provides stipend to children belonging to SC and ST communities, those with special needs or infected with HIV and those who are orphans.

The students are readmitted into the class they dropped out of. Education is provided free of cost to them, up till class 12. 

Thanks to these two schemes, in 2023, 82 per cent of the students who appeared for 10th board in Manipur passed the examination, the highest ever in the state.