Following the Gen Z protests, schoolchildren across at least 10 Indian states have now taken to protest. They are demonstrating against the long-neglected, dilapidated condition of government schools in states including Maharashtra, Bihar, Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh.
The protests are not just a challenge for India’s education system; they also signal a fresh political test for the government at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration is already struggling to retain the support of young people. The news was reported by Al Jazeera online.
Since early June, thousands of Gen Z protesters have gathered at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi’s well-known protest site. One of their main demands was accountability over a string of high-profile exam-paper leaks. These leaks are alleged to have driven many young Indians to suicide.
Questions toward the ruling party grew when the Modi government, instead of directly engaging with the protesters’ grievances, tried to portray them as extremists backed by foreign powers. Widespread unemployment and inadequate job opportunities in India also became one of the central issues of the protests.
This popular youth movement was led by the “Cockroach Janata Party,” or CJP. Its members faced beatings for demanding education reform. As anger grew and the number of protesters swelled, the Modi government backed down. Dharmendra Pradhan, a leader of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and education minister, resigned.
Schoolchildren, like those in Samuhi Bhatpurwar, are now doing something relatively rare in India’s cultural tradition — questioning teachers and figures of authority. This new generational movement, which began right after the Gen Z protests, is being widely seen as the start of the “Generation Alpha movement.”
India has one of the world’s largest education systems, with about 247 million students studying in 1.5 million schools. About 70% of these schools are run by the central, state or local governments, while the rest are operated by charities or private institutions. The 2025-26 government school audit noted an increase in access to education, along with an improvement in the teacher-student ratio — one teacher for every 24 students.
Government data also shows the school dropout rate is declining. Bangalore-based education-rights activist Nagasimha Rao said children are demanding their rights — they want teachers, benches, school buildings, drinking water, electricity and toilets.
He said it is unfortunate that the basic infrastructure and staffing needed to run schools have long been absent, and that this is the picture at most government schools across the country. Referring to government schools, Rao asked whether this was because poor children study there — since government schools are mainly attended by children from economically and socially disadvantaged families.