Access to what? Access, diversity and participation in India's schools

India has witnessed substantial diversification of provision to basic education. Policy changes from 1980s onwards, has seen the creation of para-formal delivery systems and the inclusion in the system of non state providers. The Education Guarantee Scheme and the Alternate Initiatives in Education programmes have generated new pathways to access. The paper examines the different educational providers and looks at the spread of provision, the enrolment shares, the different structure, costs and facilities. It also looks at unrecognised schools, quasi-government schools, perceived hierarchies in government schools and English-medium private schools. Diversification is contributing to improved access, but is also generating new challenges for equity and meaningful participation.