Nearly 20 million children aged 14 to 18 in India were not attending school, according to the country’s Ministry of Education, based on the 2023–24 Periodic Labour Force Survey. In March 2026, the ministry announced a nationwide effort to identify out-of-school and dropout children and help bring them back into education.
For a child living in a family struggling to meet basic needs, going to school can become difficult when they are expected to work and help earn money. For children from migrant families, moving from one place to another can also interrupt their education and make it harder to stay enrolled in one school. India’s education policies recognise migrant children and other children at risk of dropping out as groups that need additional support.
For migrant children, moving does not necessarily mean they have to lose their education. India’s education system has provisions aimed at helping children continue learning after migration, including flexible and alternative learning options. The government also uses open schooling through the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) to provide children who cannot attend regular schools with another way to continue their education.
The challenge is therefore not only getting children into classrooms, but helping them stay there. For a child whose family is struggling financially or moving in search of work, school can easily be interrupted. India’s current efforts focus on identifying these children, understanding why they dropped out and creating ways for them to return and catch up.
The Ministry of Education says the wider goal is to achieve 100% gross enrolment from pre-school to secondary level by 2030. Reaching that goal will depend not only on having schools available, but also on addressing the economic and social pressures that keep children away from them.