GONE GIRL

Enrolment of girls, relative to boys, in secondary and higher secondary dropping despite govt efforts; dropout rate of girls also shoots up in two years, compared to boys; overall dropout rate across Gujarat rises over 10%

- Sonali.Mistry

To encourage secondary and higher secondary education, the Gujarat government recently introduced two financial assistance schemes for female students.

However, official data reveals a concerning gradual decline in girls' enrolment in higher secondary education compared to boys.

Namo Lakshmi Yojana,' with a budget of Rs 1,650 crore, offers Rs 50,000 over four years to girls studying in Classes 9 to 12. Meanwhile, 'Namo Saraswati Vigyan Sadhana Yojana' provides Rs 25,000 to both girls and boys opting for the Science stream in classes 11 and 12.

Speaking on the issue, Rohit Chaudhari, the DEO for Ahmedabad city, said, "We are working to lower the dropout rate for both genders and will ensure that the disparity in enrolment of girls is reduced.".