The lab is missing from science class

Remember school science practicals? For many of us, they meant rushing through an experiment, getting the observation right and somehow finishing the record book on time.

But for a large number of students in India, the bigger problem is simpler: there may not even be a proper lab to begin with.

The latest UDISE+ data shows that only 57.1% of Indian schools with secondary sections had an integrated science laboratory in 2024-25. In other words, roughly four out of every 10 schools still did not have one.

The differences between states are striking. Delhi and Goa were at 97.4% and 97.5% respectively. Rajasthan and Bihar, on the other hand, were at just 26.8% and 26%. West Bengal stood at 39.2%, while Assam was at 36.2%. Maharashtra was much better placed at 76.1%.

The map in the original creative puts the national figure at 57.6%, but the latest official UDISE+ data puts it at 57.1%.

And this is more than an infrastructure problem.

You can learn about a chemical reaction from a textbook. You can watch a video explaining how a circuit works. But actually mixing the chemicals, connecting the wires or watching an experiment fail teaches you something a textbook cannot.

That is why the government has been putting more money and attention into school science infrastructure. Under the PM SHRI scheme, more than 14,500 schools are being developed with better facilities, including integrated science laboratories, subject specific labs, science kits and Atal Tinkering Labs.

There has also been a major push towards hands on STEM education. By October 2025, 10,000 Atal Tinkering Labs had been established, reaching more than 1.1 crore students. Another 50,000 labs are planned.

But there is an important catch.

Building a laboratory is only the first step. A lab without equipment, consumables, trained teachers or regular practical classes does little for a student sitting inside it.

India has made progress on getting science labs into schools. The real measure of that progress will be how many students actually get to use them.