Munish sood
mandi
Himachal Pradesh has emerged as the second-most literate state in the country, recording a literacy rate of 99.55 per cent, just behind Goa’s 99.7 per cent, in a significant milestone for the state’s education sector.
The achievement has earned Himachal Pradesh a national-level honour, which Education Minister Rohit Thakur received on behalf of the state at a programme held in New Delhi on Tuesday to mark International Literacy Day.
The state’s literacy rate has risen from 99.3 per cent in September 2025 to 99.55 per cent this year, bringing it within striking distance of complete literacy. The state government has set a target of achieving 100 per cent literacy during 2026-27.
The improvement has been driven by the implementation of the New India Literacy Programme (ULLAS) across all 12 districts. The programme has focused on bringing non-literate adults into the formal learning process and equipping them with basic literacy and numeracy skills.
The scale of the initiative is reflected in its reach. As many as 94,930 learners have been identified and registered on the ULLAS portal, while 19,232 volunteer teachers have been registered and specially trained to support the learners. Students have also been roped in as mentors, with two to four academically proficient students selected from each school unit to assist learners.
The Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Assessment Test (FLNAT) results further underline the progress. In the three assessment rounds held since September 2024, 61,542 learners were assessed and 59,896 cleared the test, recording an overall pass percentage of 97.3 per cent.
In the first assessment in September 2024, 14,516 of 15,351 candidates passed, giving a success rate of 94.6 per cent. The figure improved to 98.3 per cent in March 2025, when 28,062 of 28,534 candidates cleared the assessment. In March 2026, another 17,318 of 17,657 candidates passed, recording a success rate of 98.1 per cent.
The state has also registered a marked improvement in broader school education indicators. Its position in the Performance Grading Index (PGI) 2.0 has improved from 13th to sixth nationally, placing Himachal third among states. Similarly, in the National Achievement Survey/PARAKH assessment, Himachal has moved up to fifth position from 21st in 2021.
With the literacy rate now at 99.55 per cent, the state’s focus is shifting from achieving basic literacy to sustaining the gains and expanding digital literacy, vocational skills and lifelong learning opportunities.
The latest figures put Himachal Pradesh just 0.45 percentage points short of its 100 per cent literacy target, setting the stage for the state to potentially achieve complete literacy during the current financial year.
