PRAYAGRAJ, March 19 -- Despite efforts to boost the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in higher education, the number of students enrolling in traditional courses in Uttar Pradesh has declined in the 2024-25 academic session, according to government data.

Surprisingly, this drop comes even as the number of private universities and colleges in the state has increased. The data reveals a decrease of approximately 1.5 lakh students compared to the previous academic year. According to the income-expenditure report presented by the UP higher education department in the state assembly recently, 53,28,969 students were studying in traditional courses in the 2024-25 session in varsities and degree colleges spread across the 75 districts of the state, ...