SYLLABUS

GS-2: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to education.

Context: The Union Ministry of Education released the Performance Grading Index 2.0 for States/UTs (PGI-S) and the Performance Grading Index for Districts (PGI-D) for 2025–26 to assess school education performance across States/UTs and districts.

About the Performance Grading Index 2.0 for States/UTs (PGI-S)

• The Department of School Education & Literacy, Ministry of Education, developed the PGI 2.0 to evaluate the performance of States and Union Territories in school education. 

• It follows a grading system instead of ranking, allowing multiple States/UTs to be placed in the same performance band. 

• PGI 2.0 is the revised version of the earlier Performance Grading Index framework.

• The framework carries a total weightage of 1,000 points across 70 indicators. 

• The indicators are grouped under 2 categories: Outcome and Governance & Management. 

• These cover 6 domains: 

1. Learning Outcomes and Quality 

2. Access 

3. Infrastructure & Facilities 

4. Equity 

5. Governance Processes 

6. Teachers Education & Training 

• The framework is aligned with data from: 

• Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) 
• PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024 
• PM POSHAN Portal 
• PRABAND Portal 
• Vidyanjali Portal 

Key Findings of PGI-S 2025–26

• No State/UT achieved the top three grades, Utkarsh, Uttam-1 or Uttam-2, indicating significant scope for improvement. 

• Chandigarh was the only State/UT to attain Uttam-3 (761–820). 

• Four States/UTs attained Prachesta-1: Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, Punjab, Kerala and Delhi.

• Five States/UTs attained Prachesta-2: Lakshadweep, Himachal Pradesh, Goa, Maharashtra and Odisha. 

• Thirteen States/UTs were placed in Prachesta-3, while another thirteen States/UTs were placed in Akanshi-1. 

• No State/UT fell under Akanshi-2 or Akanshi-3. 

About the Performance Grading Index for Districts (PGI-D) 2025–26

• The Department of School Education & Literacy, Ministry of Education extended the Performance Grading Index to the district level through PGI-D. 

• PGI-D assesses districts on a common parameter, with greater emphasis on measuring the outcomes of educational policies. 

• The framework has a total weightage of 600 points across 70 indicators. 

• The indicators are grouped into 6 categories: 

• Outcomes 
• Effective Classroom Transaction 
• Infrastructure Facilities & Student Entitlements 
• School Safety & Child Protection 
• Digital Learning 
• Governance Process 

• These are further divided into 11 domains: 

1. Learning Outcomes and Quality (LOQ) 

2. Access Outcomes (AO) 

3. Teacher Availability and Professional Development Outcomes (TAPDO) 

4. Learning Management (LM) 

5. Learning Enrichment Activities (LEA) 

6. Infrastructure, Facilities & Student Entitlements (IF&SE) 

7. School Safety & Child Protection (SS&CP) 

8. Digital Learning (DL) 

9. Funds Convergence & Utilisation (FCU) 

10. Attendance Monitoring Systems (AMS) 

11. School Leadership Development (SLD) 

• The framework uses data from: 

• Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) 
• PARAKH Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024 
• PRABANDH Portal 

Key Findings of PGI-D 2025–26

• No district attained the highest grades of Utkarsh or Uttam-1 in either 2024–25 or 2025–26. 

• 19 districts reached Uttam-2 in 2025–26, compared with 16 districts in 2024–25. 

• The number of districts in Uttam-3 increased from 75 to 97. 

• Districts in Prachesta-1 decreased from 332 to 325, indicating improvement in overall performance. 

• 473 districts improved their PGI score in 2025–26 compared with 2024–25. 

• 89 districts achieved grade-level improvement. 

• 664 districts remained in the same grade in both years. 

• 29 districts slipped by one grade in 2025–26 compared with 2024–25.