School age population, pre-primary education, female (number) (age) in India
India: School age population, pre-primary education, female (number) (age) was 31.86 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
31.86 million
Change on year
down 0.9%
World rank
1st
of 222 countries
All-time high
36.28 million
in 1998
All-time low
15.02 million
in 1970
Years of data
56
1970–2025
School age population, pre-primary education, female in India, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
India recorded 31.86 million for school age population, pre-primary education, female in 2025.
That represents a change of down 0.9% on the previous year and down 8.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, pre-primary education, female in India peaked at 36.28 million in 1998 and was at its lowest, 15.02 million, in 1970.
India ranks 1st of 222 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
School age population, pre-primary education, female (number) (age) in India, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 15.02 million | — |
| 1971 | 15.26 million | +1.6% |
| 1972 | 15.56 million | +2.0% |
| 1973 | 15.90 million | +2.2% |
| 1974 | 16.19 million | +1.8% |
| 1975 | 16.47 million | +1.7% |
| 1976 | 16.84 million | +2.2% |
| 1977 | 17.22 million | +2.3% |
| 1978 | 17.60 million | +2.2% |
| 1979 | 18.00 million | +2.2% |
| 1980 | 18.29 million | +1.6% |
| 1981 | 18.63 million | +1.9% |
| 1982 | 18.96 million | +1.8% |
| 1983 | 19.23 million | +1.4% |
| 1984 | 19.64 million | +2.1% |
| 1985 | 20.18 million | +2.7% |
| 1986 | 20.68 million | +2.5% |
| 1987 | 21.09 million | +2.0% |
| 1988 | 21.52 million | +2.0% |
| 1989 | 21.99 million | +2.2% |
| 1990 | 22.40 million | +1.9% |
| 1991 | 22.82 million | +1.9% |
| 1992 | 23.12 million | +1.3% |
| 1993 | 23.31 million | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 23.55 million | +1.0% |
| 1995 | 23.70 million | +0.7% |
| 1996 | 23.83 million | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 36.11 million | +51.5% |
| 1998 | 36.28 million | +0.5% |
| 1999 | 36.05 million | -0.6% |
| 2000 | 34.13 million | -5.3% |
| 2001 | 34.74 million | +1.8% |
| 2002 | 34.83 million | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 34.97 million | +0.4% |
| 2004 | 35.21 million | +0.7% |
| 2005 | 35.47 million | +0.8% |
| 2006 | 35.61 million | +0.4% |
| 2007 | 35.52 million | -0.2% |
| 2008 | 35.27 million | -0.7% |
| 2009 | 34.93 million | -1.0% |
| 2010 | 34.57 million | -1.0% |
| 2011 | 35.03 million | +1.3% |
| 2012 | 34.91 million | -0.4% |
| 2013 | 34.85 million | -0.2% |
| 2014 | 34.77 million | -0.2% |
| 2015 | 34.63 million | -0.4% |
| 2016 | 34.42 million | -0.6% |
| 2017 | 34.04 million | -1.1% |
| 2018 | 33.58 million | -1.4% |
| 2019 | 33.23 million | -1.0% |
| 2020 | 33.02 million | -0.6% |
| 2021 | 32.92 million | -0.3% |
| 2022 | 32.63 million | -0.9% |
| 2023 | 32.39 million | -0.8% |
| 2024 | 32.14 million | -0.8% |
| 2025 | 31.86 million | -0.9% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 31.86 million is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 430,456, 74.0× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- India's 31.86 million is above the median for South Asia, which is 428,944, 74.3× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where School age population, pre-primary education, female (number) (age) in India changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | +51.5% | 23.83 million | 36.11 million |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 16.40 million | 15.02 million | 18.00 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 20.02 million | 18.29 million | 21.99 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 27.12 million | 22.40 million | 36.28 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 35.07 million | 34.13 million | 35.61 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 34.40 million | 33.23 million | 35.03 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 32.49 million | 31.86 million | 33.02 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near India
More education data for India
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 7.31 million (2025)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 3.10 million (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 19.37 million (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 18.52 million (2025)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 133.16 million (2025)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 126.12 million (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -8.85 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0862 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, pre-primary education, female in India?
- School age population, pre-primary education, female in India was 31.86 million in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, pre-primary education, female recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 36.28 million in 1998.
- What is the lowest school age population, pre-primary education, female recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 15.02 million in 1970.
- How does India rank for school age population, pre-primary education, female?
- India ranks 1st out of 222 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school age population, pre-primary education, female rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, pre-primary education, female (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 56 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release