Essays

"India has the highest number of illiterates in the world, amind-boggling 290 Millions adult illiterates—A matter of utter shame.

Mahatma Gandhi Ji visualized education a basic tool for the development of consciousness and reconstruction of society. Great reformers like Raja Ram Mohan Roy and IsliwarChandra Vidyasagarthought that emancipation of Indians was only possible through education."

After 57 years of independence, we are still too far away from the universalliteracy What is the reason 7 Why have we come to such a sorry state? Reason canbe well enumerated; Improper planning, poor implementation of policies, lack ofInfrastructure and lack of political will are the main causes responsible for such stateof affairs.

If seen statistically, literacy in India has made remarkable strides sinceIndependence as seen by the recently declared provisional results of the Census 2001.The literacy rate has increased from 18.33% in 1951 to 65.38% in 2001. This isdespite the fact that during the major part of the last five decades there has beenexponential growth of the population nearly 2% per annum. Some of the importanthighlights of Census 2001 are given below:

The literacy rate in the country has increased to 65.38% which reflects anoverall increase of 13.17%, the fastest ever growth. This is the highest rate sinceindependence.

The male literacy rate has increased to 75.85% which shows an increase of11,72%. On the other hand, the female literacy of 54.16% has increased at a muchfaster rate of 14.87%.

The male-female literacy gap has reduced from 24.84% in 1991 to 21.70% in2001. Mizoram has the smallest gap (4.56%) followed by Kerala (7.45%) andMeghalaya (8.27%).

All States and Union Territories without exception have shown increase inliteracy rates during 1991-2001. In all the States and Union Territories the maleliteracy has gone now over 60%.

For the first time since independence there has been a decline in the absolutenumberof illiterates. In the previous years there has been continuous increase in thenumberofilliterates, despite the increase in the literacy rates, but now for the first timethe total number of illiterates has come down by 31.96 million.

The number of literate persons has increased to 562.01 million in 2001 thusadding an additional 203.61 million literates in the country.

Rajasthan has recorded the highest increase in the literacy rate among theStates/UTs oflndia. Literacy rate ofRajasthan in 7+ population in 1991 was 38,55%which has increased to 61.3% in 2001. The State also recorded very good increase inthe female literacy. It was 20.44% in 1991 which has increased to 44.34% in 2001.The female literacy rate ofChhattisgarh in 7+ population in 1991 was 27.52% whichhas increased to 52.40% in 2001. Thus the rise in female literacy rate in Chhattisgarhhas been to the extent of 24.88% which is the highest among all the States/UTs of thecountry. Madhya Pradesh also recorded a good increase in female literacy rate.1991 the literacy rate of females was 29.35% which has increased to 50.28% in 2001.

According to Census 2001, the State ofKerala has topped the list with 90.92%literacy. This state also secured top position in both male (94.20%) and female(87.86%) literacy. Keralaclosely followed by Mizoram and Lakshadweep. Biharwitha literacy rate of 47.53% ranks last in the country with lowest rate for male (60.32%and female (33.57%).

In Ninth Five Year Plan, the education is regarded as the most crucialinvestment in human development. The Prime Minister Special Action Plan hasstressed the necessity for expansion and improvement of social infrastructure ineducation field. The goal has further gained importance in the National Agenda forGovernment (NAG) which states; "We are committed to a total eradication ofilliteracy. We will formulate and implement plans to gradually increase thegovernmental and non-governmental expenditure on education upto 6% of the (G.D.P that is to provide education to all. We will implement the Constitutionalprovision of making primary education free and compulsory upto 5th standard.Our aim is to move towards equal access of educational standard upto the schoolleaving stage. We shall strive to improve the quality of education at all levels—from Primary Schools upto Universities.

Under the Vajpayee Government, the department ofElementary Education andLiteracy, Ministry ofHuman Resource Development, has launched the Sarva ShikshaAbhiyan (SSA) a national mission to provide quality education for eight years to allchildren in the age group of 6-14 years. All the district in the country are to be coveredby the programme. By 2010, all the children will have completed eight years of qualityelementary education under the programme.The National Literacy Mission (NLM)launched in 1998.The goal of the National Literacy Mission is to attain full literacy,i.e., a sustainable threshold level of 75 % by 2005. The mission seeks to achieve thisgoal by imparting functional literacy to non-literates in the 15-35 age group. This agegroup has been the focus of attention because they are in the productive andreproductive period of life. The total literacy campaign offers them a second chance,in case they missed the opportunity or were denied access to mainstream formal; education.

Themission also takes into its fold children in the 9-14 age group, in areas notcovered by non-formal education programmes to reach the benefits of literacy to out-of-school children as well. The major thrustot'these programmes is on the promotion| of literacy among women, Scheduled Castes and Tribes and backward classes.

The National Literacy Mission eventually aims at ensuring that the totalliteracy campaigns and their sequel, the post-literacy campaigns, successfully moveon tocontinuing education whichprovideslife-longleamingand is responsible for thecreation of a learning society.

Strategy to achieve the set goals :

(a) To Adopt a national strategy in mission mode to take care of the need fordiversity of approach and interregional variations.

(b) Stress on proper environment building and active participation of the peopleespeciallywomen.

(c) Encourage joint efforts by Governmental and Non-Governmentalorganizations.

(d) Preparation of local specific primers in local languages.

(e) Integrated approach to total literacy and post-literacy programmes totackletheproblemofresidual illiteracy and to reduce the time gap betweenTLC and PLP.(f) Stress on vocational training ofneo-literates to facilitate linking literacywith life skills.

A number of significant programmes have been taken up since Independenceto eradicate illiteracy among adults through different programmes like SocialEducation (1951-56), Gram Shiksha Muhim, Farmers Functional Literacy (1967-68), Non-Formal Education. Polyvalent Adult Education, Education Commission.Functional Literacy for Adult Women, National Adult Education Programme, RuralFunctional Literacy Project, State Adult Education Programme, Adult Educationthrough Voluntary Agencies etc.

Earlier there was also a campaign made for a two-year duration of 40 hours instruction, and evaluation was conducted at the end of the campaign.

After the launch ofNLM in 1988, between 1988 and 1990, the Mission triedtoconsolidate the earlier centre-based programme to make its implementation moreeffective through the campaign-based approach. The real breakthrough came with anexperiment m mass literacy, a campaign initiated in 1989 and successfully completedin Emakulam District ofKerala.

The basic idea is to see that theneo- literates are not slipped back into illiteracy.There arenumerous good schemes butthe problem lies in theirproperimplementation.Lack of motivation among school teachers, poor infrastructure facilities, corruption,are the basic reasons why the result could not come as desired. There is little healthycontact between the teacher and the taught, parents are unwilling to send theirdaughters to school. The dropout rate still remains high. Some States, like TamilNadu, launchedthe scheme of Mid-day meal to reduce the drop-out percentage. Theinfrastructure provided in the schools are not adequate. Many schools are being)in open or in buildings without roof or plaster.

It is absolutely necessary that the problem of illiteracy is to be tackled on war level by making awareness to the general masses about the importance of beingliterate. A powerful mass movement involving the Central and State Governments.Municipalities, Panchayats, NGOs, the mediaand every other supportive institutions.is required to be launched. Education is the most significant instruments of Nationdevelopment.

Literacy is the base of the Nation's overall progress and development. Wemust remember that ignorance leads to greater expectation and lackof empowermentleads to perpetuation ofpoverty and hunger. India is known for best skilled man poweredin the world, and also for largest number of illiterates in the world. The bane ofilliteracy is to be root out at the earliest at all levels with all out positive efforts withstrong political determination and will.Eradication of illiteracy should be given duepriority. Delay can be disastrous .

Vocabulary

1. boggling—disapproval, scruple, hesitation, question. 2. emancipation—liberty, release,liberation. 3. enumerated—specified, explicit, specific, particularized . 4. strides—walk,pace, measured step. 5. crucial—critical, decisive, pivotal. 6. stressed—forceful. Insistent,assured. 7. thrust—punch, stab, poke, shove, wallop. 8. sequel—consequence, continuation,progression. 9. primers—beginner's book, textbook, preparatory book. 10. eradicate—extirpate, exterminate, annihilate. 11. polyvalent—having a valence of more than Iwo.12. consolidate—combine, solidify, condense, merge. 13. tackled—set in motion, begun,launched, embarked upon. 14. ignorance—unawareness, unconsciousness, unfamiliarity.15. empowerment—grant, authorize, enable, permit. 16. perpetuation—maintenance,permanence, propagation. 17. disastrous—calamitous, ruinous, unfortunate. 18. bane—suffering, pain, distress, trouble, misfortune-