ULLAS Nav Bharat Literacy Program, 2022

Policy Update
Radhika Gupta

Background

India, despite being a rapidly developing country and the world’s fourth largest economy, faces a significant literacy challenge today. Despite the government’s efforts to promote inclusive education and achieve a 100% nationwide literacy rate, 28.7 Crore people remain illiterate in the country, according to the 2011 Census report.

Particularly in the age group of 15 years and above, 25.76 Crore people are non-literate out of which- approximately 65% are females and 35% are male. To address this education gap, the government launched the ULLAS Nav Bharat Literacy Program in 2022.

This centrally sponsored initiative, also called as the New India Literacy Program aligns with the National Education Policy of 2020. It aims to cover non-literates of the age group of 15 years and above in all Indian states/UTs.

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Source- ULLAS official website

ULLAS was started to change the official definition of literacy. Earlier those who could sign their names on paper were considered literate but now a citizen is only considered literate when he/she is able to functionally read, write and perform basic operations including financial and digital activities.

Functioning

The program’s implementation is based on the spirit of volunteerism or Kartyabodh and encourages community involvement. School and college students, especially those from Teacher Education Institutions (TEIs) are encouraged to participate and teach the learners under ULLAS. Additionally, support is also taken from PRIs, Anganwadi Workers, ASHA workers, NYSK, NSS and NSS volunteers.

Surveys (both online and offline) are conducted to identify persons in the age group of 15 years or above who either couldn’t start their education or had to drop out from school mid-way. After this, all learners and volunteers are registered on the ULLAS portal/mobile app directly.

Training, workshops and orientations are organized in hybrid mode i.e. either face-to-face or in online mode for the learners. Educational content is also made available in regional languages via the DIKSHA portal and the ULLAS mobile app/portal. When the students feel that they have completed their learning process, they can apply for certification by appearing in the Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Assessment (FLNAT) assessment.

This scheme aims to covers a wide range of components for making learners fully literate which include-:

Foundation Literacy and Numeracy– Includes reading, writing and mathematical skills.
Critical Life Skills– These include financial, digital and legal literacy as well as education about healthcare and awareness, childcare and education, family welfare etc.
Vocational Skills– It encompasses skill development as a part of continuous learning process for neo-literates to obtain local employment.
Basic Education– For providing appropriate equivalence.
Continuing Education- This includes engaging in holistic adult education courses in arts, sciences, technology, culture, sports, recreation as well as other topics of interest or use to local learners.

To encourage both learners and educators- certificates, appreciation letters and felicitations are provided on completion of different steps.

Also, under ULLAS priority is given in terms of categories to girls and women, SC/ST/OBC/Minorities, persons with special needs, marginalized workers etc who can substantially and immediately benefit from adult education.

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Source- Official ULLAS Website

ULLAS has been approved by the Indian Parliament for FY 2022-2027. The Financial Outlay of the scheme is as follows-

Total Budget of the Scheme	From Central Government	From State Government
₹1037.90 Crore	₹700 Crore	₹337.90 Crore

Particularly for the ongoing Financial Year of 2025-26, the central government allocated ₹160 Crore to ULLAS.

Performance

Under the ULLAS scheme, learners are assessed through the FLNAT. Upon passing the exam, they are provided with certification and declared literate. More than 77 Lakh students nationwide have appeared for the FLNAT till now. Following, are the details of assessments conducted till now-:

FLNAT	Date	States/UTs Participated	Learners Appeared	Learners Certified	Pass Percentage
1^st	19/03/23	11	22,37,510	20,42,174	91.27%
2^nd	24/09/23	13	17,57,053	15,75,129	89.64%
3^rd	17/03/24 (I) (II)	23	33,29,704 1,32,685	29,52,385 –	88.6% Results of 3 States/UTs Pending

Various state bodies have started volunteer initiatives, schools and centers under ULLAS to promote literacy. For instance, in Chhattisgarh’s Raipur the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) established ULLAS centers in various underprivileged districts. This was done after conducting a survey in 33 state districts (including the ones in tribal areas) and identifying those with lowest literacy levels.

Impact and Challenges

The ULLAS mobile app has more than 1.50 Crore registered learners and over 37 Lakh volunteer teachers, (till June 25, 2024) showcasing the widespread reach of the initiative. More than 77 Lakh persons have appeared for FLNAT nationwide as well.

Also, since the implementation of ULLAS in 2022, many Indian states and UTs have been declared fully literate. These include-:

Ladakh-It was India’s first administrative unit to be declared fully literate on June 25, 2024, after surpassing 97% literacy rate under the ULLAS program
Mizoram– It was declared a fully literate state by Chief Minister Lalduhoma on May 21, 2025 through the utilization of ULLAS program. The state recorded a 98.2% literacy rate this year which is a significant leap from the 91.33% recorded in the 2011 census.
Goa– Chief Minister Pramod Sawant announced that the state had achieved a 100 percent literacy rate under the ULLAS program on May 30, 2025.

Though many learners nationwide have benefited under the scheme, some challenges with the program’s implementation have also been reported. One of them is finding and sustaining volunteers as the scheme is highly dependent on them. Many volunteers participate for only a short duration of time due to factors such as inadequate incentives, time constraints and limited training opportunities. This leads to frequent inconsistencies in learning. Another issue is the digital divide prevalent in the country. ULLAS uses various mobile applications to provide learning resource materials to participants and these aren’t easy to access in remote areas with low internet connectivity.

Also, poor coordination among different departments involved in implementation of ULLAS like the Education, Panchayati Raj or City Municipality, Information and Public Relations have led to delays in execution and resource allocation. There have also been infrastructure limitations reported in the various schools and community centers where classes are held for learners enrolled in the ULLAS program. Problems like lack of electricity supply, no seating arrangement or teaching aides have been reported by various districts.

Conclusion

ULLAS has demonstrated the power of community-driven education with the support of government collaboration. The scheme aims to empower five crore learners between FY 2022-2027, and make India a fully literate country by 2030. However, the government must address the implementation issues of the program, make learning resources more accessible in rural, remote and tribal areas as well as provide a better infrastructure for conducting classes to the learners in order to complete the scheme’s mission successfully.