New Delhi, Mar 13: Bihar has the lowest literacy rate in the country followed by Arunachal Pradesh and Rajasthan, according to Ministry of Education.

The literacy rate in rural India is 67.77 per cent as compared to 84.11 per cent in urban India, it said.

The information was shared by Union Minister of State for Education, Annapurna Devi in response to a written question in Lok Sabha.

"Samagra Shiksha scheme envisages the school as a continuum from pre-school, primary, upper primary, secondary to senior secondary levels.

"The states and UTs are assisted by the central government to implement the Samagra Shiksha as a programme for providing universal access and retention, bridging the gender and social category gaps in education and enhancement of learning level of children at all levels of school education," Devi said.

According to the data shared by the Ministry of Education, Bihar (61.8 pc) has the lowest literacy, followed by Arunachal Pradesh (65.3 pc) and Rajasthan (66.1 pc).

Kerala has the highest literacy rate (94 pc) followed by Lakshadweep (91.85) and Mizoram (91.33 pc), it said.

The ministry said to improve the literacy rate among adults in the country, a centrally sponsored scheme of Adult Education Saakshar Bharat.

It said the scheme was implemented in the rural areas of 404 districts in 26 states and one Union Territory, that had adult female literacy rate of 50 per cent and below as per Census 2001, including left wing extremism affected districts..., the ministry informed the House.

"The target was to raise the overall literacy rate of the country to 80 per cent and reduce gender gap to 10 per cent point by the end of XII five year plan.

"The scheme was extended up to March 31, 2018. During the implementation of Saakshar Bharat scheme, against the overall target of making 7.00 crore adult non-literates as literates, around 7.64 crore learners who passed the biannual Basic Literacy Assessment Tests conducted by National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) between August, 2010 to March, 2018, were certified as literates," said Devi.

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Dehradun(PTI): After undergoing rigorous training at the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun, 491 cadets participated in a grand Passing Out Parade on Saturday and will now be commissioned as officers in the Indian Army.

The spectacular parade, held at the historic Drill Square in front of the academy's Chatwood Building, was reviewed by Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi, who served as the reviewing officer.

Along with 491 Indian cadets, 34 foreign cadets from 14 friendly countries also participated in the Autumn Term 2025 Passing Out Parade.

A total of 525 officer cadets from the 157th Regular Course, 46th Technical Entry Scheme, 140th Technical Graduate Course, 55th Special Commissioned Officers Course, and Territorial Army Online Entrance Exam 2023 Course participated in the Passing Out Parade.

The 'Sword of Honour' and gold medal for securing first place during training was awarded to ACA Nishkal Dwivedi, the silver medal to BUO Badal Yadav for second place, and the bronze medal to SUO Kamaljeet Singh for third place.

The silver medal for securing first place in the 'Technical Graduate Course' was awarded to Officer Cadet Jadhav Sujit Sampat, and the silver medal for first place in the 'Technical Entry Scheme-46' was awarded to WCC Abhinav Mehrotra.

The silver medal for the 'Special Commission Officer Course' was given to Officer Cadet Sunil Kumar Chhetri.

Among the foreign cadets, the first place in merit was secured by JUO Mohammad Safin Ashraf from Bangladesh. The Army Chief's Banner for overall best performance in the Autumn Term was awarded to Imphal Company.

As the parade concluded, helicopters showered flowers on the newly commissioned officers from the sky.

On this occasion, General Dwivedi congratulated the new officers in his address for successfully completing their training. He praised the young officers for their high level of discipline, leadership qualities, and endurance, and urged them to uphold the glorious traditions of the Indian Army and serve the nation with loyalty, commitment, and honour.

General Dwivedi said that joining the army marks the beginning of a lifelong duty and selfless service.

The parents and guardians of the newly commissioned officers were also present during the passing out parade.