Drop in number of govt schools too suggests jobs are top priority in India

But real worry is the ensuing neglect, and imminent demographic change

Possibly for the first time in India since independence, where education has been the subject of discussion and a sector requiring quality improvement, government elementary schools in India are on a decline. 

While the total number of schools in India is rising, the decline is only in the elementary schools run by the government (Chart 1), and there are two chief reasons for this: the shift of demographic bulge from school going-age to working-age, and tapering enrolment resulting from increasing preference for private English education. 

The population bulge in India shifted from the 5-9 age range in 2001—meaning, primary school—to