Indian National Official Literacy Statistics

According to the Seventh All India Education Survey by the National Council of Educational Research and Training some of the startling illiteracy statistics are:

• Less than half of India's children between the age of 6 and 14 go to school
• A little over one-third of all children who study in grade one reach grade eight.
• At least 35 million children aged 6 - 14 years do not attend school.
• 53% of girls in the age group of 5 to 9 years are illiterate.
• High cost of private education, need to work to support their families, and little interest in studies are the reasons given by 3 in every four drop-outs as the reason they leave.

The True Heros

Free the Children is an organization that embodies the morals and rights we would like to see in our world. From their small beginnings to their global success projects I find that they are the true heroes in the quest for literacy.
For great ideas and ways to play your part within your own community can come from their website: http://www.freethechildren.com/

Other organizations that have taken this initiative include:
Save the Children
UNICEF
abc life

It is the drive of organizations like these which often inspire people to unite to fight illiteracy.

Drop-out Rates

India's illiteracy problem is often accompanied by another education issue: drop-outs. The high drop-out rate in India is primarily caused by child labour. A poor family may need a child to work to feed the family and regard schooling as a financial loss. So, the children may stay in school until they are old enough to work and then drop out. They are those who are considered "literate" but do not have enough education to find a well paying job. This raises a startling question about how many people have enough education to hold a decent job. It was a quote by the Prime Minister of India addressing this issue on a pained tone, "only 47 out of 100 children enrolled in class 1 reach class 8, putting the drop out rate at 52.78%"
-Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh, 2005