Chennai, Aug 13 (IANS) A sharp drop in Tamil Nadu’s birth rate and a corresponding fall in student enrolment have compelled the state government to temporarily shut down 208 of its primary and middle schools this academic year, according to the Department of Elementary Education (DEE).

Fresh data from the DEE reveals that 1,204 schools across the state did not register a single new admission in 2024-25. This list includes 208 state-run institutions, 114 government-aided schools, 11 partially funded schools, 869 private schools, and two Central government institutions.

Among the government-run schools, 157 fall under the School Education Department, 13 under the Adi Dravida Welfare Department, 19 under Social Welfare, and eight under Tribal Welfare.

A senior DEE official said the closures are not permanent. “Operations will resume when enrolment picks up in the affected areas. The trend of low admissions is visible across all types of school managements and departments,” the official noted.

Most of the affected schools are in rural or remote locations where there are very few children of school-going age. In some cases, students who enrolled in June have since migrated with their parents to other regions.

Officials attribute the fall in government school admissions to urban migration, parents opting for private English-medium schools, and shifting livelihood patterns. Population statistics underscore the scale of the demographic change.

According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare’s population projections for 2011-2036, the number of children aged 0-1 years in Tamil Nadu fell from 10.74 lakh in 2011 to 9.53 lakh in 2021 and is expected to decline further to 8.78 lakh by 2026.

The state’s total fertility rate (TFR) has dropped from 1.68 during 2011-15 to 1.54 in the current period (2021-25), well below the replacement level of 2.1.

Public Health Department records show that live births decreased from 9.02 lakh in 2023 to 8.46 lakh in 2024 — a year-on-year fall of 6.2 per cent.

Education authorities caution that while the current closures are temporary, sustained declines in birth rates and enrolments may require a long-term restructuring of school infrastructure, staff allocation, and educational planning in the state.

–IANS

aal/dpb