Shillong, July 24: In a major education reform aimed at strengthening accountability and improving learning outcomes, the Meghalaya Government on Friday launched the Meghalaya School Performance Grading Index (MSPGI) 2025-26, introducing a State-level school grading and ranking framework that evaluates 11,443 recognised schools on a uniform performance matrix. Prepared using certified UDISE+ 2025-26 data, the index provides every recognised school with an individual score, grade and rank to identify institutional strengths and deficiencies while guiding evidence-based policy interventions. Launching the initiative, Education Minister Lahkmen Rymbui said the grading system would be conducted annually to drive continuous improvement and promote healthy competition among schools. He cautioned that institutions which consistently record poor performance despite repeated assessments could face regulatory action, including cancellation of recognition, asserting that while establishing a school is a constitutional right, institutions must meet prescribed standards and remain accountable for the quality of education they provide.
Released by the Education Department, the MSPGI is based on 43 indicators across five domains—Accessibility, Digital Education, Infrastructure Facilities, NEP Activities and Quality Parameters—with a maximum composite score of 1,000 points. Schools are placed across 17 performance grades, ranging from Utkarsh (Outstanding) to Akanshi-10 (Intensive Support), enabling school heads, teachers, School Management Committees and education authorities to identify gaps, prepare improvement plans and monitor institutional progress.
Describing the initiative as a landmark reform in school education, Rymbui said the State Government had introduced the grading framework to ensure every school understands where it stands and what it needs to improve.
“This is the first of its kind where the State Government has ranked its own schools. Every school should know where they rank, what are the things to improve,” he said.
The Minister said although Meghalaya has more than 14,000 schools, 11,443 recognised schools have been assessed under the inaugural MSPGI using authenticated UDISE+ data.
“Out of this we are ranking district. While there are over 14 thousand schools in Meghalaya, the Government has introduced ranking. Zero percent to 100 percent, schools are ranked,” he said.
He said the State-specific grading framework would enable school management committees and education authorities to objectively assess institutional performance.
“It is state specific PGI scores so that different managing committees will know where they stand. As per the UDISE score, all the schools including CBSE, ICSE school who submits UDISE, methodology used are from UDISE report,” Rymbui said.
The Minister said the assessment would become an annual exercise to track progress and encourage continuous improvement.
“Will do every year we will do that,” he said.
Warning that institutions failing to improve could face strict action, Rymbui said the Government would closely monitor schools that consistently perform poorly.
“Some school where their school have not performed better. If every year they do not perform, if their score continues to be low, then we will take necessary steps. It is constitutional right to establish school but if they fail to perform, the schools are subject to the cancellation of recognition. We make take necessary steps so that these school should not remain,” he said.
He said the grading framework would encourage schools to improve their standards through healthy competition.
“This will make the schools competitive,” he added.
The MSPGI has been modelled on the Union Ministry of Education’s Performance Grading Index (PGI) but extends the framework to the level of individual schools. Unlike the national PGI, which assesses the overall performance of States and Union Territories, the MSPGI evaluates each recognised school using certified UDISE+ data submitted by the institutions themselves.
The assessment covers 43 indicators across five key domains—Accessibility, Digital Education, Infrastructure Facilities, NEP Activities and Quality Parameters. Binary indicators receive full marks upon compliance, while percentage-based indicators are scored proportionately. Where an indicator is not applicable to a particular category of school, its weightage is redistributed proportionately to ensure fairness across different types of institutions.
Each school assessed under the framework receives an individual report card indicating its score, performance grade and State ranking. The Education Department said the report cards are intended to help schools identify priority gaps, formulate improvement plans, engage with teachers and School Management Committees and seek support from Block and District authorities. The Department clarified that the MSPGI complements existing academic inspections and classroom assessments and should not be interpreted as a standalone measure of students’ learning outcomes.
Schools are classified into 17 performance levels: Utkarsh (941–1000), Uttam-1 (881–940), Uttam-2 (821–880), Uttam-3 (761–820), Prachesta-1 (701–760), Prachesta-2 (641–700), Prachesta-3 (581–640), Akanshi-1 (521–580), Akanshi-2 (461–520), Akanshi-3 (401–460), Akanshi-4 (341–400), Akanshi-5 (281–340), Akanshi-6 (221–280), Akanshi-7 (161–220), Akanshi-8 (101–160), Akanshi-9 (41–100) and Akanshi-10 (0–40).
According to the inaugural MSPGI rankings, Jyoti Sroat School Higher Secondary, East Khasi Hills, emerged as the best-performing school in Meghalaya, securing 930 out of 1,000 points, earning the Uttam-1 (Excellent) grade and claiming State Rank 1.
At the other end of the rankings, Step by Step Lawwahskei L.P. School in West Khasi Hills recorded 26 out of 1,000 points, placing it in the Akanshi-10 (Intensive Support) category and ranking 11,443rd in the State.
In the Top 100 Schools (All Management Types) category, Jyoti Sroat School Higher Secondary topped the list with 930 points. Grace Academy Secondary School, East Khasi Hills, with 769 points, and St. Alfred’s Secondary School, Ri Bhoi, with 768 points, featured at the lower end of the Top-100 rankings.
Among Government schools, Jyoti Sroat PM SHRI School, East Khasi Hills, secured the highest score with 921 points, while Lumiew Shillong RCLP & UP School, Eastern West Khasi Hills, recorded 682 points, placing it at the bottom of the Top-100 Government Schools category.
The Education Department said improvements achieved through the MSPGI would directly contribute to Meghalaya’s performance under the national Performance Grading Index (PGI). The State’s PGI score has improved from 401.62 in 2022-23 to 525.71 in 2025-26, moving Meghalaya from the Akanshi-3 category to Akanshi-1, marking the first time the State has moved out of the lowest performance band under PGI 2.0. Officials said the MSPGI is expected to sustain this momentum by embedding quality benchmarks at the school level and supporting evidence-based improvements across the education system.
