Govt committed to empower minorities through education: Raju

"The Sachar Committee as well as other studies have found that the reason for the relative social and economic backwardness of the minorities, especially of Muslims, is due to their educational backwardness," Raju said.

"Therefore, in order to pull such minorities, constituting approximately 18.42 per cent of the country's population from the brink of marginalisation and to infuse a sense of inclusiveness in the national mainstream, it is essential to enhance education of the minorities," he added.

The HRD minister was speaking at a function organised by the National Commission for Minority Educational Institutions (NCMEI).

Raju said the Prime Minister's New 15 Point Programme and the recommendations of the Sachar Committee address this challenge of enhancement of education of minorities.

The Eleventh Five-Year Plan had also underlined that education is critical factor that empowers participation in the growth process and a key element of the XI Plan strategy is to provide essential education to those large parts of population which are still excluded from these, he said.

Minister for Minority Affairs K Rehman Khan, who was also present at the event, said there was also a need to monitor the initiatives taken for minorities and the government was working on this front.