Performance Grading Index (PGI) 2.0 Report

Syllabus: Education

 Source:  TP

Context: The Ministry of Education released the Performance Grading Index (PGI) 2.0 report for 2022-23 and 2023-24, ranking States/UTs on school education.

• Chandigarh topped the index while Meghalaya was at the bottom.

About Performance Grading Index (PGI) 2.0 Report:

• What it is: An evidence-based assessment tool measuring the performance of school education across States/UTs.
• Launched in: 2017 and PGI 2.0 version aligned with NEP 2020 and SDGs.
• Published by: Ministry of Education, Govt of India.
• Domains Covered: 6 domains, 73 indicators — Learning Outcomes, Access, Infrastructure & Facilities, Equity, Governance Processes, and Teacher Education & Training.
• Grading Scale: Out of 1000 points, classified into 10 grades from Daksh (Top) to Akanshi-3 (Lowest).

Summary & Trends in Performance Grading Index (PGI) 2.0 Report:

• Top Rank: Chandigarh scored 703 points, achieving Prachesta-1, reflecting its strong performance in governance and infrastructure.
• Lowest Rank: Meghalaya scored 417 points (Akanshi-3), indicating persistent challenges in access and learning outcomes.
• No State in Top 4 Bands: No State/UT reached Daksh (Top 951-1000) or Utkarsh bands, showing systemic gaps needing national-level reforms.
• Overall Progress: 24 States/UTs improved in 2023-24, though 12 recorded a decline, signalling uneven progress.
• Infrastructure Gains: Delhi, J&K, Telangana showed top progress in upgrading school infrastructure and learning environments.
• Learning Outcomes: No State reached Daksh in this domain; reflects the long-standing issue of poor learning levels in foundational literacy and numeracy.
• Equity: Gaps in educational outcomes between SC/ST and general category students have narrowed slightly but remain an area of concern.
• Access Improvements: Bihar and Telangana showed highest gains in increasing enrolment and retention, especially among disadvantaged groups.

Analysis of PGI 2.0 Report:

• Positive Trends:
  • Wider Score Gains: 24 States/UTs improved scores in 2023-24, indicating systemic strengthening of school education post-pandemic disruptions.
  • Access Excellence: Odisha achieved Daksh in Access, reflecting robust enrolment, retention, and efforts to minimise dropouts.
  • Progressive Equity: PGI 2.0 shows gender parity improving across most States and gaps in enrolment and learning for SC/ST and minorities steadily narrowing.
  • Infrastructure Upgradation: Delhi, J&K, Telangana demonstrated model progress in upgrading physical infrastructure (toilets, electricity, digital classrooms), vital for NEP 2020 goals.
  • Access Improvements in Low Performers: Bihar, Telangana, Jharkhand moved up bands in Access, showing targeted interventions in under-served areas.
  • Learning Outcomes Leadership: Chandigarh, Punjab, Puducherry ranked in higher bands of Learning Outcomes, highlighting that focused governance can yield quality improvements.
  • Governance & Digital Monitoring: Progress seen in some UTs like Chandigarh in digitisation of school governance, UDISE+ adoption, transparent fund utilisation.
• Negative Trends:
  • No State in Top Bands: No State/UT reached Daksh or Utkarsh (761+ scores) — underscoring that quality of education lags behind infrastructure and access gains.
  • Persistent Learning Gaps: Outcomes in NAS 2021 reveal low proficiency in foundational literacy & numeracy across most States — urgent challenge for NEP 2020.
  • High Inter-State Variability: Score gap of ~286 points between Chandigarh (703) and Meghalaya (417) shows deep regional disparities in school education quality.
  • Declining Performance in 12 States: Bihar, Karnataka, West Bengal, Andaman Nicobar, Ladakh among States where PGI scores fell — suggests weak post-pandemic recovery in some regions.
  • Infrastructure Deficits in Aspirational States: Many low-performing States still report lack of functional toilets, boundary walls, libraries, labs — critical to both equity and learning.

Way Ahead:

• Address Learning Gaps: Urgent need to improve Learning Outcomes — foundational literacy & numeracy as per NEP 2020 goals.

• Accelerate Access: Sustain progress on Access and focus on retaining vulnerable and marginalised children.
• Strengthen Governance: Enhance monitoring & governance capacity to ensure effective policy implementation.
• Improve Infrastructure: Priority to upgrade labs, libraries, toilets, digital classrooms across low-performing States.
• Build Equity: Continue efforts on gender, caste, and rural-urban equity to ensure inclusive quality education.

Conclusion:

PGI 2.0 is a robust benchmarking tool aligned with NEP 2020. While progress is evident, India must intensify efforts to address learning gaps, governance bottlenecks, and infrastructure inequalities to meet SDG 4 by 2030

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