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| Recast literacy programme to focus on women's education |
| Press Trust of India / New Delhi Aug 21, 2009, 17:33 IST |
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Literate India — a recast literacy programme under the National Literacy Mission Authority — will be launched next month in 365 districts across the country with a special focus on educating women and improving India's female literacy level.
Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal said the government has decided to "tweak" the NLMA to focus on women and the mission will be launched in these districts where female literacy levels are below 50 per cent.
"We are structurally changing the mission and adopting entire new strategies. We have decided to implement the new scheme with the help of Panchayati Raj institutions. We aim to bring the country's literacy level to 80 per cent by 2017," he told reporters after the 11th meeting of the NLMA council.
Sibal said the definition of literacy, which was so far just self-reliance in reading, writing and arithmetic, will be redefined and people will be taught to acquire skills to improve their economic status and general well-being.
The minister said there is a 21 per cent gap which is "wide" between the literacy levels of men and women and seven states alone account for 70 per cent of illiterate people in the country.
Sibal, however, refused to name the states saying "I don't want to make headlines". According to 2001 census the states are Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Karnataka and Maharastra.
The HRD Minister said funds will be routed through the states and encourage larger interaction between the states and Centre on the issues related to the mission.
He also said the government can build on with the mission and even synergise it with other programmes such as NREGA.
About the existing mission, Sibal said there were some shortcomings such as it could not move forward and there was lack of proper cooperation between the states and the Centre.
"Under the new mission, states will set up state level authorities. Funds will be routed through the states and we will have a mechanism to check its spending so that there is no misuse of funds and shortage also," he said.
The Minister said the new programme will have efficient delivery systems. Asked whether students can join it to educate the masses, he said: "Why not? If they are in a position to do it we will accept them. It can be part of their social service."
Sibal also parried a question on Gujarat government banning Jaswant Singh's book on Jinnah, saying "I am talking about educating people not books," he said.
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