International Literacy Day 2020: Why Is It Important To Celebrate Literacy Day? Know Which 5 States In India Have A Higher Literacy Rate

The world celebrates International Literacy Day today to promote literacy as human rights and its importance in building a sustainable world. A recent survey done by the National Statistical Office (NSO) show which states are ranking higher in literacy rates.

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International Literacy Day 2020: Literacy day is celebrated since 1967 on September 8 to promote literacy as a part of human rights and something that helps people live with dignity. The theme this year ‘Literacy teaching and learning in the COVID-19 crisis and beyond with a focus on the role of educators and changing pedagogies’ will be on the effect of the pandemic on education system around the world and how it has affected the literacy gap. According to UNESCO,' By exploring these questions, International Literacy Day 2020 will provide an opportunity to reflect on and discuss how innovative and effective pedagogies and teaching methodologies can be used in youth and adult literacy programmes to face the pandemic and beyond.'  ALSO READ| Delhi To Mumbai In Straight 12 Hours. This Expressway To Be Ready By 2022! Recently the data of Household Social Consumption on Education survey done by India the National Statistical Office (NSO) of India was released. The survey data is based on a sample size of 64,519 rural households from 8,097 villages and 49,238 urban households from 6,188 blocks. They were all surveyed all for a period of one year. The data shows marked improvement since the literacy rates in both rural and urban areas since Independence.  Although India has yet to achieve 100 percent literacy and the overall percentage till 2017 stood at 77.7 percent, there were several changes which raises hopes. Some states are also doing much better than others. Based on the survey data, here are the top 5 states with high literacy rates (overall which includes male and  female rates along with urban and rural figures ) Kerala- 96.2 per cent Delhi- 88.7 per cent Uttarakhand- 87.6 percent Himachal Pradesh- 86.6 per cent  Assam- 85.9 per cent  States that still show comparatively lower rates include- Andhra Pradesh (66.4), Rajasthan (69.7), Bihar (70.9), Madhya Pradesh (73.7), and Jharkhand (74.3).The overall Female literacy rate at 70.3 percent is still lower compared to the male literacy rate which is at 84.7 percent.