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Education in Tribal India A study of West Bengal by Nabakumar Duary, 2010, Mittal Publications; New Delhi; 172 + xx; Hb ; INR. 500.; ISBN - 81-8324- 250 - 2
Six decades after independence, the tribal people of our country ,as a whole lag much behind the other communities in educational attainment. Since the very inception of development initiatives for the tribal people , it was well conceived that education is not simply necessary but one of the topmost priorities. It is undeniable that the planning and programmes for the tribals including the Five Year plans have explicitly reflected the emphasis on education. In spite of all these measures and efforts , the fact remains that the rate of literacy among the Scheduled Tribes is 47.10 per cent compared to the 75.06 per cent literacy rate in the country. The question is what ails the whole thing .
In the case of the tribal education , there is no thumb-rule on the basis of which we can predict any pan-Indian trend showing a general propensity of the tribes towards formal education or a wholesome apathy towards it. The tribes in the North-East have done fairly well in formal education as their rate of literacy suggests. On the other hand , the east and central Indian tribes cut a very sorry figure in this regard. With regard to education, the tribes show a myriad picture in India. Among the different tribes in...