Gujarat launched the statewide Samras Vidyasetu Mega Campaign on 22 July 2026 from Ahmedabad, with the goal of bringing more than 80,000 out-of-school children back into classrooms across Classes 1 to 12. The campaign is tied to the state’s stated ambition of achieving a ‘Zero Dropout’ status through re-enrolment, tracking and retention of children who have left the formal school system.

The Samras Vidyasetu framework combines several interventions: identifying dropout children, re-enrolling them, contacting and counselling parents, conducting home visits, providing mentoring and running bridge courses. Bridge courses are especially important because children returning after a long gap often need academic support to catch up before they can rejoin regular classes with confidence.

The campaign builds on Gujarat’s broader school-enrolment ecosystem. The state launched the 24th edition of its annual Shala Praveshotsav on 25 June 2026 from B.N. High School in Vadnagar. Shala Praveshotsav is the state’s flagship enrolment drive that brings children into the formal education system at the start of the academic cycle, complementing the fresh dropout-focused push.

Technology has become central to this effort. The Education Department deployed an Artificial Intelligence-based Early Warning System at the Vidya Samiksha Kendra in Gandhinagar, which flagged 1,18,234 students at risk of dropping out in 2026. Alongside this, the Child Tracking System — an online platform covering over one crore students in more than 54,000 schools — re-enrolled 90,212 children and is now being integrated with the Early Warning System for sharper targeting.

Recent data underline both progress and challenge. Under the Back to School Mission, Gujarat re-enrolled 29,451 students between 10 and 12 July 2026, including 14,875 boys and 14,576 girls, with Banaskantha emerging as a focus district. Yet UDISE+ 2025-26 data placed the state in the education ministry’s red zone for secondary education, with a dropout rate of 15.7 per cent against the national average of 9.5 per cent.

The significance of the campaign extends beyond enrolment numbers. Dropout and net enrolment rates are core indicators of the health of an education system, with direct links to child rights, gender equity, future employability and long-term human-capital formation. Data-driven interventions like the Early Warning System reflect a shift towards evidence-based governance, where predictive analytics help target support before a child slips out of school entirely.

Practice Questions (MCQs)

Total 10 questions — 7 moderate level and 3 UPSC/RPSC level.

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