Bihar Education Overview

Bihar is home to one of India’s ancient universities, the Nalanda University. The tradition of learning which lost its sheen in ancient times, was revived by the British with the establishment of Patna University and other centers of higher learning which includes Science College Patna and Prince of Wales Medical College, now known as Patna Medical College and Hospital.

Major educational reforms were recommended and implemented in the 1960s by the then Education Minister, Satender Narain Sinha. However, these reforms were short-lived and modern day Bihar witnesses a lot of brain drain. Many students migrate to places like Delhi, Bengaluru and Pune because of lack of infrastructure, quality teachers, and lack of placement opportunities. Inspite of these shortcomings, students from Bihar have done exceedingly well in the IITs, IIMs and medical colleges.

School Education in Bihar

Bihar ranks lowest in the literacy rate in India. Over the years Bihar has faced many challenges including lack of infrastructure development and poor education policies in the state. Of all the cities in Bihar, Patna has highest literacy rate in Bihar with 63.82% while Kishangang ranks the lowest with 31.02%. Bihar has not made much development in the standard of school education and still follows the system set by the British. However, there are several good schools in Patna and nearby cities which are continuing their strive to provide quality education to the children of the state.

As in other states, the central government runs a number of Kendriya Vidyalayas (Central Schools) and Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya for rural students. Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya started by the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi have been successful in providing quality education to the weaker sections of the society. Most of the schools in Bihar are affiliated with the Bihar School Examination Board, while the Kendriya Vidyalaya and a few other elite schools including the Christian Missionary Schools are affiliated to the ICSE and CBSE boards.

Higher Education in Bihar

Patna is one of the major centres of higher education in Bihar. It is not only home to some of the best schools in Bihar but it also imparts education in the fields like technology, medicine, management, law and fashion. Some of the colleges and universities recently opened are Chanakya National Law University, a national law university and a B-school called Chandragupt Institute of Management.