Newly appointed Education Minister Dina Nath Sharma early this week has floated an idea of setting a five-year literacy programme with a view to eradicating illiteracy from the country. Minister Sharma had called all senior officials, including his office secretary, and ordered them to form a committee.
The committee will be led by Joint-secretary Laba Dev Awasthi. It will include representatives of all line agencies, including Non-Formal Education Centre. According to Awasthi, the panel will assess present situation of illiteracy, analyse access to the current programmes and make work division among line agencies. “We will mobilise ninth to 12th graders in the literacy programme,” added Awasthi.
Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal-led government had endorsed a two-year programme worth Rs 2 billion in 2008 to make 7.8 million illiterates literate. Non-Formal Education Centre claims that nearly half of them have been made literate. However, the data has not been independently verified.
(Source: The Himalayantimes)
