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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION AND LITERACY
RAJYA SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO- 1317
ANSWERED ON- 11/02/2026
Nipun Bharat Mission and foundational literacy in tribal-majority districts
1317 # Smt. Mamata Mohanta:
Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:
(a) current progress of State of Odisha towards achieving literacy and numerical proficiency
up to Class 3 under the NIPUN Bharat Mission;
(b) the specific measures taken to strengthen teacher capacity, teaching materials and
evaluation frameworks in tribal-dominated districts like Mayurbhanj;
(c) the mechanisms adopted for real-time monitoring of learning outcomes; and
(d) whether there is any proposal for providing additional educational support to areas
lagging behind in achieving the targets?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
(SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY)
(a) The Department of School Education & Literacy, Ministry of Education has launched
a National Mission called “National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding
and Numeracy (NIPUN Bharat)” on 5th July, 2021 for ensuring that every child in the
country necessarily attains foundational literacy and numeracy by the end of Grade 2. This
Mission aligned with NEP 2020, has been set up under the aegis of the centrally sponsored
scheme of Samagra Shiksha- an integrated scheme for School Education. Under Samagra
Shiksha, all 36 States/Union Territories are implementing the NIPUN-Bharat Mission. It is
the first time that the age group of 3-6 years has been included in the school continuum in the
foundational stage in 5+3+3+4 structure consisting of 3 years of Balvatika and Grade 1 & 2.
As informed by the State Govt. of Odisha, the state has shown steady progress in
foundational literacy and numeracy under the NIPUN Bharat Mission. In the PARAKH
Rashtriya Sarvekshan 2024, 65% of Grade 3 students correctly answered literacy questions
and 61% numeracy questions. For first time Odisha has secured the 9th position nationally
among states in overall performance. To accelerate progress towards the NIPUN Bharat
goals, the state launched the NIPUN Odisha Mission in September 2024. In alignment with
NEP 2020 and the objectives of the NIPUN Odisha Mission, one year pre-primary education
(Sishu Vatika) has been institutionalized for children aged 5+ years in all Government
primary schools having Class 1, beginning from the academic year 2025–26. Sishu Vatika
has been opened in 44,367 Government schools across the State. Approximately 3,10,839
children aged 5+ years have been enrolled in Sishu Vatika during 2025–26. Focused
interventions in Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) including Monthly Cluster
Meeting for teachers, reading promotion campaigns, regular classroom observations,
Supplementary Teaching Learning Materials for FLN Grade & Primary students andstructured monitoring with assessments, Provision of Jaadu Pedi Kit for the students of Sishu
Vatika to Grade 5 students have been key enablers contributing to this consistency and
improvement.
(b) As informed by the State Govt. of Odisha, the state has undertaken several targeted
measures to strengthen teacher capacity, improve teaching-learning materials, and enhance
evaluation frameworks in tribal-dominated districts including Mayurbhanj. The key
initiatives include Development of Multilingual Education (MLE) Textbooks, Promotion of
Low-Cost and No-Cost Teaching Learning Materials (TLMs), Capacity Building of
Academic Functionaries, Training on Indigenous Toy-Based Pedagogy, Strengthening
Monitoring and Evaluation Mechanisms (The „Mayurbhanj Samikhya‟ Monitoring App has
been developed to enable real-time monitoring of academic activities by district and block-
level officers), Development of Academic Content for Secondary Classes. The district of
Mayurbhanj has implemented Medhavi Mayurbhanj 2.0, a focused academic support
initiative for Class X students aimed at improving learning outcomes and strengthening
performance in board examinations through targeted mentoring and structured academic
interventions. A dedicated district-level career counselling portal has been developed to
provide structured guidance, career awareness, and counselling support to students, enabling
them to make informed academic and vocational choices. Mayurbhanj DIET has established
a Santali branch for pre-service teacher training. As part of the curriculum, trainee teachers
develop Santali language–based questions and teaching materials for lesson plan
demonstrations, internships, and criticism lessons, thereby strengthening multilingual
pedagogy and culturally responsive teaching practices.
(c) As informed by the State of Odisha there are mechanisms for real-time monitoring of
learning outcomes. In class, Formative assessments helps teacher monitor learning outcomes
on a daily basis. Annual Sample Assessment helps to know the learning level and track the
progress. Grades 1,2, and 3 in every govt school have been provided with Sikhyana Sopan to
track student-wise, grade-wise competencies achieved every month.
(d) As informed by the State Govt. of Odisha, the State Government has put in place
targeted measures to provide additional educational support to areas lagging behind in
achieving FLN targets under the NIPUN Odisha Mission. Focused academic support is being
extended through structured remediation and revision with a strong Multilingual Education
(MLE) approach under the Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE)
programme. These interventions are further strengthened through regular classroom
observations, spot assessments, and continuous academic mentoring to facilitate timely
feedback and course correction. A statewide Reading Campaign has been launched for all
schools, with a special focused Reading Campaign in PM SHRI Schools. To generate
awareness, community participation, and system-wide momentum, the State has also
organised initiatives such as NIPUN Mela and NIPUN Saptah, aimed at enhancing the impact
and visibility of FLN efforts.
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