Education is the basic requirement for human development. With education, employment opportunities are broadened and income levels are increased. The development of an individual and the progress of a nation depend on education. The present article tried to understand the differentials and factors associated with school dropouts in India. Based on the data from Government School dropouts in India, it was found that only 75 percent of the children in the age group 6 to 16 years were attending school. It was observed that the dropout was high among the children belonging to Muslim, Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe families. Parental characteristics also play a significant role in determining school education. The dropouts among the children belonging to illiterate parents were four times higher than that of the literate parents. It was also observed that if parents were not working, the possibility of dropout among their children was relatively high. The study suggests that unless and until there is considerable improvement in the economic status of households and change in the social attitudes of parents, achieving the goal of universalisation of school education will remain a major challenge for India. Keeping in view, the increasing importance of education in India, this study is an attempt to understand the nature of student strength and school dropouts. Results are derived by using statistical techniques such as bar diagrams, linear trend analysis, t-test and analysis of variance. The results reveal that female student strength is comparatively high in the government Schools from 2011-12 to 16-17 and male strength in private schools and later during 2017-18, this scenario has changed and also observed the significant difference in the school dropouts year wise.