West Bengal plans to reduce illiteracy

The West Bengal government is planning to reduce illiteracy by ten per cent within the next five years, a state minister said today.

“From January 2017 we will include 12 lakh students in our literacy campaign. According to the 2011 census the illiteracy rate in India is 22 per cent and we are planning to reduce it by 10 per cent in five years,” state mass education and library services minister Siddiqullah Chowdhury said.

He said they have identified nine districts in the state upon which special attention is being given.

The districts include CoochBehar, Jalpaiguri, North and South Dianjpur, Malda, Murshidabad, Birbhum, Bankura and Purulia.

The department will celebrate the golden jubilee year of International Literacy Day on September 8 at Rabindrasadan.

On the occasion a rally with over 1000 participants will be organised from Esplanade, he said.