Dalit Access to Education in Bihar: Progress and Barriers

Despite constitutional guarantees and government interventions, Dalit children in Bihar face persistent educational exclusion through institutional discrimination, economic constraints, and systemic barriers that perpetuate intergenerational poverty cycles, requiring comprehensive policy reforms and social transformation.

Educational Landscape and Statistical Reality

Bihar’s Scheduled Caste population confronts profound educational marginalization that defies decades of affirmative action policies. According to state government reports, merely 4% of Scheduled Castes population achieves graduate-level education or above, reflecting systematic exclusion from higher educational opportunities. The situation deteriorates significantly at secondary levels, where Dalit dropout rates increased from 59.05% in 2015-16 to 65.01% in 2019-20, representing a concerning 5.96% escalation during this period. This upward trajectory contradicts national educational progress narratives and demonstrates Bihar’s particular failure in protecting marginalized communities’ educational rights.

The magnitude of educational exclusion becomes starkest when examining specific sub-communities within Bihar’s Dalit population. The Musahar community, comprising Bihar’s most marginalized Dalits, exhibits literacy rates of merely 4.6%—significantly below even other Scheduled Caste groups. Among Musahars aged 25-30, illiteracy remains prevalent, indicating that “even among the dalits, the Musahars are particularly excluded from the Education system”. This exclusion occurs despite the Right to Education Act 2009’s universal access guarantees, revealing implementation failures that disproportionately impact the most vulnerable populations.

Institutional Discrimination and Classroom Segregation

Educational institutions in Bihar perpetuate caste hierarchies through systematic discrimination practices that violate constitutional principles and international human rights standards. Research documentation reveals extensive caste-based segregation in classrooms, with Dalit children forced into separate seating arrangements and excluded from peer interactions. At GA Higher Secondary School in Vaishali district, authorities maintained separate classrooms for students based on caste and religious identities for four consecutive years, with “separate attendance registers being maintained for students belonging to different social segments”.

The discrimination extends beyond physical segregation to include psychological humiliation and degrading treatment. In A village, Patna district, Dalit children report being compelled to “massage a senior teacher’s legs and clean the teachers’ toilet,” with one student noting that “if we refused, he used to beat us”. Such practices violate Section 8 and 9 of the Right to Education Act 2009, which explicitly prohibits discrimination against disadvantaged groups. Teachers justify discriminatory behavior through caste stereotypes, claiming Dalit children are “dirty” and “unteachable,” thereby reinforcing traditional hierarchies within supposedly modern educational institutions.

Economic Barriers and Poverty Intersections

Economic constraints create compounding barriers preventing Dalit families from accessing educational opportunities effectively. Household-level poverty represents “the most common and major barrier for girls not enrolling in school and dropping out” among marginalized communities like the Musahars. Families living in single-room dwellings without basic facilities like toilets and clean drinking water face immediate survival challenges that overshadow educational priorities. The opportunity cost of education becomes prohibitive when children’s labor contributes essential income through activities like animal grazing, domestic work, or agricultural assistance.

Government scholarship programs designed to alleviate economic barriers often fail to reach intended beneficiaries due to administrative inefficiencies and corruption. Musahar students report receiving “five hundred rupees, only on one occasion” despite being enrolled for three to five years, while textbook distribution occurs irregularly—”only once in 4 years”—forcing families to purchase materials independently. The 75% attendance requirement for accessing government benefits creates additional barriers, as children facing hostile school environments struggle to maintain regular attendance, thereby losing eligibility for financial support that could enable their continued education.

Social Stigma and Peer Harassment

Caste-based social stigma permeates school environments, creating hostile atmospheres that discourage Dalit children’s educational participation. Fellow students routinely address Dalit children using “derogatory terms for their caste, community, tribe, or religion,” while excluding them from leadership roles like class monitor positions. The psychological impact proves devastating, with one Bihar student explaining: “Other children don’t let us sit with them. Some of the girls say, ‘Yuck, you people are Dom [street sweepers] – a dirty caste….The teachers never say anything even when we complain”.

This discrimination extends to basic amenities like mid-day meals, where Dalit children are “served food last when there is often nothing left” while upper-caste children receive priority treatment. Parents report that “the Kurmi [dominant caste] children are asked to sit in front. They chase away the Musahar [Dalit] children and feed the higher caste first. They give leftovers to our children”. Such systematic exclusion creates what researchers term a “cycle of exclusion, illiteracy and poverty” where discrimination reduces school participation and perpetuates marginalization across generations.

Administrative Failures and Policy Implementation Gaps

Government educational policies fail to reach Dalit communities due to weak implementation mechanisms and administrative indifference. The recent Bihar Education Department drive requiring student expulsion after three consecutive absences disproportionately impacts marginalized communities facing discrimination-induced irregular attendance. This policy operates without considering underlying causes of absenteeism, effectively penalizing victims of institutional bias rather than addressing discriminatory practices that create hostile school environments.

Teacher attitudes and administrative complicity perpetuate exclusionary practices despite legal prohibitions. School authorities justify segregation as facilitating “smooth educational process” and easier “execution of government schemes,” demonstrating institutional normalization of discriminatory practices. Teachers often belong to upper-caste backgrounds and lack sensitivity training regarding caste-based discrimination, resulting in unconscious bias that reinforces traditional hierarchies within educational settings.

Intergenerational Poverty Cycles and Limited Social Mobility

Educational exclusion perpetuates intergenerational poverty cycles within Bihar’s Dalit communities by limiting access to formal employment opportunities and social mobility pathways. With only 4% achieving graduate-level education, Scheduled Castes remain concentrated in traditional occupations characterized by economic precarity and social subordination. The absence of educated role models within communities creates what researchers term “culture of silence” where families question education’s relevance to their lived experiences and economic realities.

This educational marginalization reinforces broader patterns of social exclusion and economic dependency that characterize caste-based oppression. Children who drop out due to discrimination often enter child labor markets, perpetuating cycles where immediate economic necessity overrides long-term educational investment. The lack of educational credentials then limits future employment opportunities, ensuring continued dependence on traditional caste-based occupations that offer minimal economic advancement or social recognition.

Conclusion: Dalit educational access in Bihar remains severely constrained by institutional discrimination, economic barriers, and administrative failures that create self-reinforcing cycles of exclusion and poverty, demanding comprehensive policy reforms, strict anti-discrimination enforcement, and targeted interventions addressing both structural inequalities and cultural transformation.

Policy/Practice Implications:

• Implement mandatory bias training for all educational personnel with strict accountability measures for discriminatory practices and regular monitoring by independent bodies
• Establish comprehensive financial support systems including full fee waivers, free transportation, nutritional support, and family income supplements to eliminate economic barriers to education
• Create specialized educational support centers providing remedial instruction, psychological counseling, and mentorship programs specifically designed for marginalized communities recovering from historical educational exclusion

Further Reading:

Primary Sources Used in Article:

1. Human Rights Watch. (2014). “They say we’re dirty”: Denying education to India’s marginalized. HRW Publications. https://www.hrw.org/report/2014/04/22/they-say-were-dirty/denying-education-indias-marginalized
2. Pandey, A., & Kumar, A. (2022). Discrimination in educational institutions: A case study of Bihar. Contemporary Voice of Dalit, 14(1), 67-89. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2455328X211067603
3. Verma, R. S., & Jha, S. K. (2024). Educational disparities and socio-economic challenges in Bihar. Humanities and Social Science Studies, 12(2), 45-67. https://hsssjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/13-2023-Vol-12-Issue-2-Raj-Shree-Verma-Sunil-Kumar-Jha-1.pdf
4. Centre for Equity Studies. (2020). School education and exclusion: Understanding barriers faced by marginalized communities. CES Publications. http://centreforequitystudies.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/School-Education-and-Excluslusion.pdf

Bihar-Specific Government and Institutional Sources:

5. Government of Bihar. (2021). Bihar economic survey 2021-22: Education sector analysis. Finance Department, Government of Bihar.
6. New Indian Express. (2018). Dividing them young! Bihar’s government school makes students sit separately based on caste. New Indian Express, December 18. https://www.newindianexpress.com/nation/2018/Dec/18/bihar-school-segregates-students-on-caste-lines-1913196.html
7. Business Standard. (2018). Caste, religion segregation in Bihar govt school, inquiry ordered. Business Standard, December 19. https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/caste-religion-segregation-in-bihar-govt-school-inquiry-ordered-118122001008_1.html

Research Studies and Academic Papers:

8. Kumar, A. (2017). Schooling and inequality in the Musahar community of Bihar. Asian Association for Research Foundation, 8(2), 112-134. https://www.aarf.asia/current/2017/Aug/q1GKR0Au24u8KUa.pdf
9. Raj, S., et al. (2023). Participatory ethnography research for Musahar community educational access. Girls’ Education Challenge Report. https://girlseducationchallenge.org/media/qweojyb5/rrlf-nidr-report-may-2023.pdf
10. IDR Online. (2025). Musahari children’s struggle to attend schools in Bihar. India Development Review, September 2. https://idronline.org/ground-up-stories/musahari-childrens-struggle-to-attend-schools-in-bihar/

Statistical and Data Sources:

11. UDISEPlus. (2024). Unified District Information System for Education Plus: Bihar state report 2022-24. Ministry of Education, Government of India.
12. Census of India. (2001). Primary census abstract: Scheduled castes and scheduled tribes population. Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India.
13. Education for All in India. (2025). State-wise number of children dropped out between 2022-23 and 2023-24. EFAI Publications, February 11. https://educationforallinindia.com/state-wise-number-of-children-dropped-out-between-2022-23-and-2023-24/

NGO and Civil Society Reports:

14. Sebastimmal, S., & Tiwari, M. (2025). The impact of missionary education on Dalit communities in Patna, Bihar. Forum for Linguistic Studies, 7(6), 45-62. https://journals.bilpubgroup.com/index.php/fls/article/download/9147/6480/48839
15. International Dalit Solidarity Network. (2019). “They say we’re dirty” – Denying an education to India’s marginalized communities. IDSN Report. https://idsn.org/portfolio-items/they-say-were-dirty-denying-an-education-to-indias-marginalized-%EF%BF%BC/
16. Children on the Edge. (2024). Education for Dalit children in India: Addressing caste discrimination. COTE Publications. https://childrenontheedge.org/how-we-help/education/dalit-children-in-india/addressing-caste-discrimination

Legal and Policy Documents:

17. Government of India. (2009). The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009. Ministry of Human Resource Development.
18. Government of India. (1955). The Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 (Amendment 1976). Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

Additional Contemporary Sources:

19. Village Square. (2025). Education comes to a community ridiculed as rat-eaters. Village Square India, May 26. https://villagesquare.in/education-comes-to-a-community-ridiculed-as-rat-eaters/
20. India Today. (2025). Nature as classroom, neglect as policy: Story of Bihar’s government schools. India Today, August 29. https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/bihar-supaul-government-primary-schools-without-buildings-students-study-under-open-sky-2778699-2025-08-29
21. National Human Rights Commission. (2024). Study on the Musahar community of Bihar. NHRC Publications. https://nhrc.nic.in/press-release/study-musahar-community-bihar