BIMARU in education: 5 states struggling to send people to school

Causes for disengagement include financial constraints, parental unwillingness

BIMARU, a term coined by demographer Ashish Bose to describe states trailing economically in the 1980s, would be archaic now. But judging Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha in terms of their people’s education and training the term doesn’t seem amiss.

The report of the government's Comprehensive Annual Modular Survey shows how the five states have done in school education. Between 2020-21 and 2022-23, the participation of individuals aged 15 to 24 in formal and non-formal education declined in these states.

National participation rate increased in this period, marking the persistent educational challenges in the