Patna: Bihar’s higher education system is facing serious questions after the state education department found that several colleges failed to take part in an important national survey. This failure, officials say, has played a major role in Bihar’s poor performance in higher education enrolment. At present, the state’s Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) stands at only 17.1 per cent, which means that out of every 100 students who complete school education, only 17 go on to colleges or universities. This figure is much lower than the national average of 28.4 per cent.
During a review, the education department discovered that 44 higher education institutions in Bihar did not participate in the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE). This survey is conducted every year by the Ministry of Education to collect data on students, teachers and facilities in colleges and universities. Because these institutions did not submit information, the details of many students were not recorded at all. Officials say this missing data has made Bihar’s higher education system appear weaker and has affected planning and policy decisions.
The institutions that skipped the survey include 10 degree colleges, 32 nursing colleges and two pharmacy institutions. The education department has now decided to take strict action. The recognition of the 10 affiliated degree colleges will be cancelled for not following official instructions. For the nursing and pharmacy colleges, the department will soon write to the health department, which supervises these institutions, asking it to take necessary action. Officials say participation in the survey is compulsory and cannot be ignored.
The education department had earlier instructed more than 1,000 institutions, including 39 government and private universities, to take part in the 2024–25 survey. Most of them followed the directions. Out of 1,341 higher education institutions in the state, 1,331 submitted their data. Similarly, 186 out of 218 nursing colleges participated. Officials say this is the highest level of participation Bihar has seen so far, making the absence of the remaining colleges even more serious.
Explaining the importance of the survey, Director of Higher Education Dr N K Agarwal said that the AISHE, which has been conducted every year since 2011, helps the government understand the real condition of higher education. The data is collected online and is used to make policies, improve colleges and increase student enrolment. He added that even after repeated reminders and extensions of the deadline, more than 40 institutions did not cooperate, leaving the department with no option but to act.
The state government hopes that strict steps will send a clear message to colleges about their responsibilities. Officials believe that better data and full participation will help Bihar design stronger education policies and slowly improve its enrolment numbers, which currently remain lower than those of neighbouring states such as Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and West Bengal.
