Kerala was declared a Fully Literate State in 1991 and is the only state in India where over 90% of the people can read and write, thanks to the free and compulsory education provided to all children up to the age of 14 years. Apart from this, the Kerala government is taking every possible step to improve the quality and standard of education.
Education, in its broadest sense, refers to the ways in which people learn skills and gain knowledge and understanding about the world, and about themselves.A Literate is any person who is able to read and write on his own and Literacy is the ability to read and write or is the quality of being literate.
Kerala stands first among other Indian states in literacy.Recognizing the need for a literate population and provision of elementary education as a crucial input for nation building, the state government with the backing of the central government, launched a number of plans and programmes over the past years to encourage elementary education in Kerala.
Besides, a number of government organizations and voluntary associations under various schemes and services, conduct classes for the illiterate adults.The literacy rate in the urban areas is slightly greater than in the rural areas. As per the norms of National Literacy Mission, a literacy rate above 90 % shall be treated as complete literacy.It was on this basis that Kerala was declared a Fully Literate State.
