In order to improve literacy levels among the Scheduled Tribe (ST) population, the Andhra Pradesh Tribal Welfare Department is planning to seek help from Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) to impart quality education. And to this end, it plans to correlate birth details of the last 10 years in the State and make sure all ST children are enrolled in schools.
Only 48.63 per cent of the State’s ST population is literate as per the 2011 census, a senior department official said. “Though the percentage has risen over the decades, it is still not high. We are planning to ask NGOs to help government-run schools improve the quality of education across the State,” he said, requesting anonymity. Sponsoring students with educational material, imparting counselling for those in class IX and X, and helping teach students in tribal schools, are some ways in which the department wants the NGOs to contribute. He also said a few NGOs had already come forward after the plan was mooted.
