NSO: Kerala tops Literacy Rate in India again, Check rank-wise list

National Statistical Office (NSO) report suggests Kerala as the most literate state in India with 96.2% literacy followed by Delhi in the second position, meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh revealed to be worst-performing. Above all, the overall literacy rate of India as 77.7%.

NSO has released the report: Household Social Consumption: Education in India, as a part of the 75th National Sample Survey (July 2017-June 2018) based on the literacy of individuals above 7 years of age. 

As per the study, Delhi acquired the second position after Kerala with 88.7% literacy rate. Following which, is Uttarakhand with 87.6%, Himachal Pradesh with 86.6% and Assam 85.9%. Hence, Kerala, Delhi, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Assam acquired the top 5 positions. 

On the other hand, Andhra Pradesh featured at the bottom with a literacy rate of 66.4%. Rajasthan has been charted out as a second-worst performer with 69.7%, then Bihar at 70.9%, Telangana at 72.8%, Uttar Pradesh 73% and finally Madhya Pradesh 73.7%. 

Literacy Rate in India: Worst Performing States and Gender-based Literacy Gap 

The worst performing states also showcased considerable gaps in male and female literacy rates. Andhra Pradesh has a female literacy rate of 59.5% which is lower than the male literacy rate of 80.8%.

Same goes for Bihar, where males have a literacy rate of 79.7% which is higher than the female literacy rate of 60.5%. The gap widens in Rajasthan where the female literacy rate is 57.6% whereas male literacy rate is as high as 80.8%.

The survey revealed that in every state literacy rate of males are considerably higher than females. In Kerala, the male literacy rate is 97.4% whereas that of females is 95.2%.

Similarly, the male literacy rate of Delhi pegged at 93.7% several notches higher than 82.4% literacy rate of females.

however, the Central government is making several strides to improve the condition by 2030. The 'Padhna Likhna Abhiyan'  has launched by PM Modi aiming to tackle the literacy-related challenges in the post COVID world.

The Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank on Tuesday said that the Abhiyan will be a leap forward for achieving the goal of total literacy by 2030. Education Minister also assured that teaching and learning material will be made free of cost and teachers will be provided full instructions and guidelines under the scheme 'Padhna Likhna Abhiyan'. 

Literacy Rate 2020 in Rural and Urban Areas

The NSO survey projected the overall literacy rate of India as 77.7%. While the literacy rate in rural areas is 73.5%, that of urban areas is 87.7%. At the national level, the male literacy rate which is 84.7% is several notches higher than female literacy rate of 70.3%. 

Nearly, 24% from rural areas and 56% among urban dwellers, actually used the internet and operated computers at least 30 days prior to the survey. 

A sample size of 64,519 households from 8,097 villages was chosen for the survey. Additionally, 6188 blocks that included 49,238 households from urban areas also formed a part of the survey. 

The report featured 4% of rural households and 23% of urban households were in possession of computers. Alongside this, considering individuals in the age group of 15-29 years who can operate computers, 56% belonged to urban areas whereas 24% to rural areas.