Almost half of thescheduled tribe(ST) Population in Naduare illiterates, according to the statistics based on the 2011 census released by the minister of state for tribal affairsRenuka Singh Saruta.
Furnishing a written reply to the queries posed byVillupuramMP D Ravikumar in theLok Sabha, the minister said the Literacy rate of ST men in Tamil Nadu stood at 54.3% as against the national Average of 59% and ST Women in the state at 46.8% as against the national average of 49.4%.
Scheduled tribe men in Lakshadweep have the highest literacy rate, at 91.7%, followed by Mizoram (91.5%) and Nagaland (80%), while Andhra Pradesh ST men registered the lowest literacy rate at 48.8%. Scheduled tribe women in Mizoram have the highest literacy rate at 89.5%, followed by Lakshadweep (87.8%). Rajasthan ST women recorded the lowest literacy rate of 37.3%.
Interestingly, Saruta said as per the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) report (July 2019-June 2020) published by the Union statistics and programme implementation ministry, the literacy rate for scheduled tribes in India is 70.6%. “However, state-wise details of literacy rates are not available in PLFS report,” the minister of state said.