Every year, thousands of children from the beautiful hills of Uttarakhand leave their villages and move to cities such as Dehradun, Haldwani or even Delhi and Chandigarh. The reason is painfully simple: their villages do not have good schools beyond Class 5 or 8. Parents are left with no choice but to send their children away – and often they follow them eventually. This is how villages become “ghost villages”.
A recent study of the Uttarakhand Migration Commission found that nearly one out of two households in hill districts sends their children out primarily for education-related reasons. It is heartbreaking that children living in the lap of nature are left without access to decent science laboratories, computer classes or qualified teachers for higher grades.
At the same time, more than 2,000 schools in Uttarakhand have less than 30 students each, and many run with only one teacher. How can we expect meaningful learning in this situation?
The Cost of Scattered Schools
The existing model – small schools in scattered villages – made sense many decades ago. Today, it is working against the people of Uttarakhand:
Subject teachers do not want to stay in remote areas where there are just 8–10 students.
Most schools cannot afford proper classrooms, labs, sports fields or libraries.
Families get discouraged and eventually migrate in search of better education.
If the state continues like this, youngsters will keep moving out and the villages will keep becoming empty.
A Practical and Powerful Solution
What Uttarakhand urgently needs is a residential school approach to education. This simply means:
Early classes (Nursery to Class 3) to be held in village-level Anganwadi Centers, upgraded with proper teaching materials and trained staff.
From Class 4 to 12, children can study in residential educational campuses located at the block level or centrally located place in block.
These block-level campuses would not be just “hostels” or “boarding schools”. They would be complete ecosystems for learning, skill-building and holistic development.
Imagine a campus where:
Children attend regular academic classes in modern classrooms,
Learn coding, AI and robotics in a computer lab,
Practice folk music and local art in cultural centres,
Train in sports grounds and yoga halls,
Learn horticulture and eco-tourism through hands-on vocational modules.
This is not a fantasy. A similar model is already being followed successfully in Navodaya Vidyalayas and Eklavya model schools, with excellent learning outcomes.
Why This Model Works:
Current Situation Residential Block level Campuses
Small, under-resourced village schools Centralised, fully equipped campuses
One teacher for multiple classes Subject-wise qualified teachers
Limited exposure to skills Modern labs and vocational courses
Families migrate to cities Children stay and study locally
The beauty of this approach is that it reduces government expenditure in the long run. Instead of spreading resources thinly over hundreds of tiny schools, we invest in one properly designed campus per block. This will also solve the teacher shortage because teachers will be willing to work in a place that has proper facilities and good living conditions.
Most importantly, parents will no longer feel helpless. They will trust that their children are getting quality education, and they will have no reason to leave their ancestral homes.
Let Us Act Now
Education is not only about literacy; it is about giving opportunities, self-confidence and hope. If the government invests in block-level residential campuses and strengthens Anganwadi centres for foundational learning, we can not only transform the education landscape, but also reverse the tragic trend of out-migration from our hill villages.
The youth of Uttarakhand are full of talent – but talent needs opportunity. Let us build an education system that ensures that no child has to leave home just to attend school.
Anil Painuly
Consultant- Social Development
