ASER 2023: 11.3% rural youth in 14-18 age group not enrolled in schools

In a major concern for the district, 11.3% of youth in the age group between 14 to 18 years, residing in rural areas of Mohali, are not enrolled in schools as per the 2023 Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) released on Wednesday by NGO Pratham foundation in New Delhi.
The survey findings are based on a shallow sample size of 1,336 youth in the said age group in a total of 1,182 households in 60 villages in the Mohali district. The findings, however, have shed light on the alarming status of students’ enrolment in the district schools or undergraduate courses.
The ASER 2023 report titled “Beyond Basics” focuses on the youth aged 14 to 18 years in rural India, an age group that was also the focus of the ASER 2017 report.
Mohali is the only district in Punjab which was chosen for the survey.
As per the report, Mohali which has a population of 10.92 lakh has 51 schools with Class 8 per 1 lakh population besides 32 schools having classes 9 and 10 per 1 lakh population, and 17 schools having grades 11 and 12 per 1 lakh population.
Highlighting the status of enrolment in rural Mohali, the report highlighted that while 47.5% of youth between the 14-18 age group are enrolled in secondary classes or below secondary, 34.1% are enrolled in classes 11 and 12, besides 7.1% of youth enrolled in undergraduate courses in colleges for degree or diplomas. However, the report stated that a total of 11.3% of youth under the said age group either never got enrolled or are dropouts.
Meanwhile, Mohali district education officer (DEO) Ginni Duggal ridiculed the dropout figure revealed by the survey and said, “We are making constant efforts to enrol maximum students in the schools as everyone has a right to avail education. We have very few dropouts in the district.”
The survey further found out that 87.2% of youth in the age group of 14 to 16 age group can read a standard two-level textbook while 88.9% of youth in the age category of 17-18 can read the grade two-level textbook.
The survey report further highlighted that while 98.6% of youth in the age group of 14-18 have a smartphone at home, 98.2% of youth can use a smartphone out of which 39.2% have their smartphones.
Additionally, the report shows that 12.2% of males in the age group of 14-18 want to join the army as compared to 4% of females. However, 7.8% of females are interested in joining the police department as compared to 11.8% of males.