To support adult education/literacy as emphasized in NEP 2020 and SDG 4.6 (ensuring all youth and adults achieve literacy and numeracy by 2030), it is essential to define both Literacy and Full Literacy.
- Literacy: Ability to read, write, and compute with comprehension, i.e. to identify, understand, interpret and create along with critical life skills like digital and financial literacy etc.
- Full Literacy (to be considered equivalent to 100% literacy): Achieving 95% literacy in a State/UT that may be considered as equivalent to fully literate.
About New India Literacy Programme (NILP)
- Also known as ULLAS (Understanding of Lifelong Learning for All in Society).
- Launched by MoE, it is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme.
- Tenure: FYs 2022-27 (5 years).
- Objective:
- Targets all non-literates of age 15 years and above, with more focus on females and educationally backward states.
- Target 5 crore learners (1.00 crore per year) by using “Online Teaching, Learning and Assessment System (OTLAS)” in collaboration with National Informatics Centre, NCERT and NIOS.
- Implemented through volunteer teachers, students of schools and Higher Education Institutions and Teacher Education Institution.
- It is in alignment with recommendations of NEP2020.
- Need: Absolute number of non-literates in 15 years and above age group is 25.76 crore (Census 2011).