The latest literacy report published last day by the UNDP ( United Nations Development programme) says that India has the highest percentage of illiteracy in the world. It normal that the second country that has the highest population can easily be in this situation. But according the report 30% percent of the population is illiterate. This percentage compelled me to rethink on this report.
It is true that we live in an age surrounded by information. There is information in our e-mail, from the Internet; even our cellular telephones send us text messages. It is ironic, then, that with so much information available to us, more people than ever before are unable to access it. India is one of the fastest growing countries in the world today. It is among just 11 countries on track to meet the Millennium Development Goal of halving poverty by 2015.
Generally speaking literacy involves a continuum of reading and writing skills, often extending to basic arithmetic skills and life skills. Because of the need to collect internationally comparable data, the concept of literacy is usually reduced to the standard definition—the ability to read and write, with understanding, a simple statement related to one’s daily life. Countries collect literacy statistics in different ways. Most rely on national population censuses that take place every 5 or 10 years, or household, labour force or other demographic surveys. However, the enumerators usually determine literacy status on the basis of self declaration or a declaration by the head of the household. That sometimes gives rise to concerns about data reliability and thus comparability. So I think the percentage of this survey exaggerated than the really what we have.
But I accept the fact that it the problem illiteracy is grave in India. Except the state like Kerala and regions like Delhi has not attained 100% of literacy. The percentage of empowered and educated women still stands low. The ruling governments launch a good number of programmes time to time but because of the inefficiency implementation many of them do not produce considerable results. Poverty is the another important obstacle of illiteracy. Let us keep the concluding words of the UNDP report that ‘illiteracy is a powerful obstacle to all types growth of the country’ and fight against the problem of illiteracy.
It is true that we live in an age surrounded by information. There is information in our e-mail, from the Internet; even our cellular telephones send us text messages. It is ironic, then, that with so much information available to us, more people than ever before are unable to access it. India is one of the fastest growing countries in the world today. It is among just 11 countries on track to meet the Millennium Development Goal of halving poverty by 2015.
Generally speaking literacy involves a continuum of reading and writing skills, often extending to basic arithmetic skills and life skills. Because of the need to collect internationally comparable data, the concept of literacy is usually reduced to the standard definition—the ability to read and write, with understanding, a simple statement related to one’s daily life. Countries collect literacy statistics in different ways. Most rely on national population censuses that take place every 5 or 10 years, or household, labour force or other demographic surveys. However, the enumerators usually determine literacy status on the basis of self declaration or a declaration by the head of the household. That sometimes gives rise to concerns about data reliability and thus comparability. So I think the percentage of this survey exaggerated than the really what we have.
But I accept the fact that it the problem illiteracy is grave in India. Except the state like Kerala and regions like Delhi has not attained 100% of literacy. The percentage of empowered and educated women still stands low. The ruling governments launch a good number of programmes time to time but because of the inefficiency implementation many of them do not produce considerable results. Poverty is the another important obstacle of illiteracy. Let us keep the concluding words of the UNDP report that ‘illiteracy is a powerful obstacle to all types growth of the country’ and fight against the problem of illiteracy.
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Kollamkunnel Sebastian.
