Literacy in India: Government's Efforts to Achieve 100% Literacy

By Khritish Swargiary, Writer

source: MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION (SMT. ANNPURNA DEVI)

The Government of India has launched an ambitious scheme called the 'New India Literacy Programme' (NILP), now popularly known as 'ULLAS- Nav Bharat Saaksharta Karyakram,' to address the issue of literacy in the country. According to the Minister of State for Education, Smt. Annpurna Devi, the scheme aims to empower adults aged 15 years and above who could not receive proper schooling and remained deprived of mainstream education.

Literacy Rates in India

The literacy rate in India, as per the Census 2011, stands at 72.98% for persons, with 80.88% for males and 64.63% for females. The literacy rates vary significantly across states and union territories:

S. No.	Name of States / UTs	Literacy Rate (Persons)	Literacy Rate (Male)	Literacy Rate (Female)
-	India	72.98	80.88	64.63
1	Andhra Pradesh	67.02	74.88	59.15
2	Arunachal Pradesh	65.38	72.55	57.70
3	Assam	72.19	77.85	66.27
4	Bihar	61.80	71.20	51.50
5	Chhattisgarh	70.28	80.27	60.24
6	Goa	88.70	92.65	84.66
7	Gujarat	78.03	85.75	69.68
8	Haryana	75.55	84.06	65.94
9	Himachal Pradesh	82.80	89.53	75.93
10	Jammu & Kashmir	67.16	76.75	56.43
11	Jharkhand	66.41	76.84	55.42
12	Karnataka	75.36	82.47	68.08
13	Kerala	94.00	96.11	92.07
14	Madhya Pradesh	69.32	78.73	59.24
15	Maharashtra	82.34	88.38	75.87
16	Manipur	76.94	83.58	70.26
17	Meghalaya	74.43	75.95	72.89
18	Mizoram	91.33	93.35	89.27
19	Nagaland	79.55	82.75	76.11
20	Odisha	72.87	81.59	64.01
21	Punjab	75.84	80.44	70.73
22	Rajasthan	66.11	79.19	52.12
23	Sikkim	81.42	86.55	75.61
24	Tamil Nadu	80.09	86.77	73.44
25	Tripura	87.22	91.53	82.73
26	Uttar Pradesh	67.68	77.28	57.18
27	Uttarakhand	78.82	87.40	70.01
28	West Bengal	76.26	81.69	70.54
29	A & N Islands	86.63	90.27	82.43
30	Chandigarh	86.05	89.99	81.19
31	D & N Haveli	76.24	85.17	64.32
32	Daman & Diu	87.10	91.54	79.55
33	Lakshadweep	91.85	95.56	87.95
34	NCT of Delhi	86.21	90.94	80.76
35	Puducherry	85.85	91.26	80.67

The complete state/UT-wise literacy rates can be found in the annexed data provided by the Ministry of Education.

Factors Affecting Literacy

The Minister acknowledged that multiple factors, such as the accumulated backlog of non-literates, poverty, gender, and social category inequalities, contribute to the low literacy rate in the country.

ULLAS- Nav Bharat Saaksharta Karyakram

To tackle this challenge, the government has launched the 'ULLAS- Nav Bharat Saaksharta Karyakram' scheme, which has a budget outlay of Rs. 1,037.90 crore, including a Central share of Rs. 700.00 crore and a State share of Rs. 337.90 crore. The scheme aims to be implemented across the nation as a movement of 'Jan Jan Saakshar' (Literacy for All).

The scheme has five components: (i) Foundational Literacy and Numeracy, (ii) Critical Life Skills, (iii) Basic Education, (iv) Vocational Skills, and (v) Continuing Education. It aligns with the recommendations of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and aims to empower adults aged 15 years and above from all backgrounds who could not receive due schooling.

Key Features of ULLAS

Some of the key features of the ULLAS scheme include:

• Involvement of school students, pre-service students of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), school teachers, Anganwadi and ASHA workers, NYKS, NSS, and NCC as volunteers.
• Use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and implementation through a hybrid mode (online and offline) via the ULLAS app.
• Assessment through the Functional Literacy and Numeracy Assessment Test (FLNAT), conducted twice a year by states/UTs in schools.
• Imparting basic education at Samajik Chetna Kendras.
• Registration of non-literates and volunteers through the ULLAS app, which also connects users to teaching-learning materials like ULLAS & UJAAS primers on the DIKSHA platform of NCERT.

The government's efforts through the ULLAS- Nav Bharat Saaksharta Karyakram scheme aim to achieve the dream of 100% literacy in the country by addressing the root causes of low literacy rates and fostering a nationwide movement for literacy and basic education.