By Vishu Adhana

New Delhi [India], June 18 (ANI): Chandigarh has emerged as the top performer in the Education Ministry's Performance Grading Index (PGI) 2023-24, even as 12 states and UTs -- including Kerala, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Bihar -- saw a dip in school education performance from the previous year.

The sharpest improvement was seen in Delhi (623.7), which jumped 44 points from the previous year (2022-23), followed by Himachal Pradesh and Haryana with a 41-point gain each, as per the PGI released on Wednesday.

Chandigarh is the best performer, scoring 703 (as compared to 687.8 in 2022-2023) and becoming the only state or UT to be placed in the top Prachesta-1 grade (score range: 701-760).

Delhi, Punjab (631.2), and Gujarat (614.4) entered the Prachesta-3 category (581-640), alongside Odisha, Kerala, DNH&DD, Haryana, Goa, Maharashtra and Rajasthan.

The biggest decline was recorded by Andaman and Nicobar Islands, which dropped 43 points, followed by Chhattisgarh (-39), Lakshadweep (-33), West Bengal (-14), Karnataka (-12), Bihar (-12), Uttarakhand (-12), Kerala (-8), Mizoram (-7), Ladakh (-6), Tamil Nadu (-4), and Jharkhand (-4).

The Performance Grading Index (PGI), launched in 2017-18 by the Ministry of Education, is a data-driven framework to assess the performance of states and UTs in school education

States are evaluated out of 1,000 points and grouped into grade bands ranging from Daksh (91-100%) to Akankshi-3 (up to 10 percent).

In 2023-24, PGI scores ranged from a high of 703 (Chandigarh) to a low of 417 (Meghalaya). The latter remained the only state in the lowest Akankshi-3 category. Ten states/UTs were placed in Prachesta-3, 14 in Akankshi-1 (521-580), 10 in Akankshi-2 (461-520), and one in Akankshi-3.

Despite the setbacks in some states, overall improvement was observed in 24 states/UTs compared to the previous year. The performance gap between the top and bottom scorers has also narrowed over the years -- from 51 percent in 2017-18 to 42 percent in 2023-24 -- which the Education Ministry attributes to evidence-based monitoring through PGI and policy initiatives like the Look East strategy.

The PGI-D 2023-24 assessed 788 districts, up from 768 the previous year due to administrative bifurcations in Delhi and Rajasthan.

Notably, Barnala district in Punjab was the only one to achieve the Uttam 2 grade (71 percent-80 percent) this year -- a band that had no representation in 2022-23.

The number of districts in Prachesta-1 (51 percent-60 percent) rose from 204 to 281, while those in Prachesta-2 (41 percent-50 percent) increased from 279 to 355. Districts in the lowest grade bands shrank significantly, with Prachesta-3 districts dropping from 226 to 110, and Akankshi districts from 23 to just one -- Meghalaya. (ANI)