Mizoram weighs takeover of more schools after provincialising 51

Mizoram is considering bringing more private and aided schools under government control after the state recently approved the provincialisation of 51 institutions, School Education Minister Vanlalthlana said in the Assembly on August 25.

Responding to questions during Question Hour, Vanlalthlana said around 180 schools had been recommended for provincialisation by the previous government. The Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) government, led by Chief Minister Lalduhoma, has so far approved 51 of them.

The 51 schools include 12 higher secondary schools, 34 high schools and five elementary schools, the minister said.

The government is now examining other schools for possible takeover, with the criteria already discussed and reviewed by the state Cabinet.

For high schools, the proposed assessment will consider factors including student enrolment, the distance from other government schools and the age of the institution. Enrolment will not be judged using a single threshold across Mizoram, with the government planning to assess schools according to their location.

Schools in the Aizawl Municipal Corporation and Lunglei Municipal Council areas will be assessed separately. A second category will cover district headquarters and places with Sub-Divisional Offices, while all other areas will be placed in a third category.

Different enrolment thresholds, including 75 per cent and 50 per cent benchmarks, will be applied under the area-based system. The government will also consider factors such as the number of households in a village while determining whether a school qualifies.

"The criteria for further provincialisation have already been reviewed by the Cabinet," Vanlalthlana told the Assembly.

The minister said the 51 schools approved under the current government were assessed using criteria notified in January 2025.

For higher secondary schools, the notification requires institutions to have operated as government grant-in-aid schools for at least 10 years. They must also have a minimum enrolment of 80 students in urban areas and 40 in rural areas for four years, besides maintaining an average pass percentage of at least 80 per cent over four years in the Mizoram Board of School Education examinations.

High schools must have completed at least 10 years as grant-in-aid institutions, own their school buildings and meet the prescribed enrolment requirements. The minimum enrolment is 30 students, while girls' schools must have at least 25 students, subject to the specified class-wise criteria.

Elementary schools are similarly required to have functioned as grant-in-aid institutions for at least 10 years, own their buildings and meet the minimum enrolment of 25 students or the applicable class-wise requirement.

The latest move could determine whether more privately run and aided schools across Mizoram are brought into the government education system, depending on their location, enrolment and other eligibility conditions.