In news– Recently, the Union government has approved a new scheme “New India Literacy Programme” for the period FYs 2022-2027 that covers all the aspects of Adult Education to align with National Education Policy 2020 and Budget Announcements 2021-22.
About the New India Literacy Programme-
- The objectives of the scheme is to impart not only foundational literacy and numeracy but also to cover other components such as-
- Critical life skills (including financial literacy, digital literacy, commercial skills, health care and awareness, child care and education, and family welfare).
- Vocational skills development (with a view towards obtaining local employment).
- Basic education (including preparatory, middle, and secondary stage equivalency).
- Continuing education (including engaging holistic adult education courses in arts, sciences, technology, culture, sports, and recreation, as well as other topics of interest or use to local learners, such as more advanced material on critical life skills).
- The scheme will be implemented through volunteerism through online mode.
- The training, orientation, workshops of volunteers, may be organized through face-to-face mode.
- All material and resources shall be provided digitally for easy access to registered volunteers through easily accessible digital modes, viz, TV, radio, cell phone-based free/open-source Apps/portals, etc.
- The scheme will cover non-literates of the age of 15 years and above in all state/UTs in the country.
- The target for Foundational Literacy and Numeracy for FYs 2022-27 is 5 (five) 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.
- A learner may register him/herself with essential information like name, date of birth, gender, Aadhaar number, mobile number etc.
- The estimated total outlay of the Programme is Rs.1037.90 crore which includes Central share of Rs.700 crore and State share of Rs.337.90 crore respectively for the FYs 2022 -27.
Salient Features of the scheme-
- School will be Unit for implementation of the scheme.
- Schools to be used for conducting surveys of beneficiaries and Voluntary Teachers (VTs).
- Different strategies are to be adopted for different age cohorts.
- Flexibility for States/UTs will be provided to undertake innovative activities.
- Foundational Literacy and Numeracy will be imparted through Critical Life Skills to all non-literates in the age group of 15 years and above.
- Use of Technologies to impart Adult Education for wider coverage of the scheme.
- Performance Grading Index (PGI) for State/UT and district level will show the performance of States and UTs to implement the scheme and achievements on yearly basis by weighing both the physical and financial progress through the UDISE portal.
- CSR/Philanthropic Support may be received by hosting ICT support, providing volunteer support, opening facilitation centres for learners and for providing IT access to economically weak learners in the form of cell phones, etc
- Priority and Saturation in Literacy- The age cohort of 15-35 will be saturated first followed by ages 35 and above.
- Priority will be given in terms of categories to the Girls and women, SC/ST/OBC/Minorities, Persons with Special Needs (Divyangjans), Marginalized/ Nomadic/ construction workers/ laborers/etc, who can substantially and immediately benefit from adult education.
- In terms of location/area, the focus shall be on all aspirational districts of NITI Aayog, districts with literacy rates less than the National/State average, districts with female literacy rates less than 60% as per the 2011 Census, Districts/ Blocks with large SC/ST/ Minority population, Educationally Backward Blocks, Left Wing Extremism Affected districts.
- Convergence with Ministries and Departments for effective implementation of NILP: MeitY: Digital Literacy, DFS/MoF: Financial Literacy, MoSDE: Skilling, DoJ/MoLJ: Legal Literacy, MoD: Involvement of NCC Volunteer and Ex- Servicemen, MoYAS: Involvement of NYKS, NSS, MoRD: NRLM and DDU-GKY, MoC: Involvement of Cooperative Societies, MoHFW: Health and Hygiene Literacy, NDMA/MHA: Disaster Management, MoMA: for implementing among Minorities, DoHE: Continuing Edn, Min of Culture: Libraries, Cultural Literacy, MoPR: For Panchayat support, Rural Libraries, MWCD: Involvement of Anganwadi Workers, and MoTA: Implementing in Tribal areas etc…
- Central Portal to be developed by NIC for aggregated data capturing equipped with Mobile App, Online Survey Module, Physical & Financial Modules and Monitoring Framework, etc.
NILP as Janandolan:
- The three crores students/children of around 7 lakh schools registered under UDISE along with about 50 lakh teachers of Government, Aided and Private schools will participate as volunteers.
- An estimated 20 lakh students from Teacher Education and Higher Education Institutions will be actively involved as volunteers.
- Support will be garnered from PRIs, Anganwadi workers, ASHA workers and an estimated 50 lakhs NYSK, NSS and NCC volunteers.
- There will be involvement of community, participation of philanthropic/CSR organizations through volunteerism and through Vidyanjali portal.
- States/UTs will promote individual/ family/ village/ district success stories through various platforms.
- It will utilize all types of media – Electronic, Print, Folk & Inter-personal platforms including social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, WhatsApp, YouTube, TV channels, radio, etc…
Source: PIB
