Shri Arjun Singh, Minister for Human Resource Development has released today Flash Statistics: Elementary Education in India: Progress towards Universal Elementary Education (UEE) 2006-07 in the meeting of Executive Commitee of the National Mission for SSA in the presence of Secretary, School Education & Literacy.  This document is the second publication on the same subject and has been brought out by the National University of Educational Planning and Administration (NUEPA).  One of the significant indicators that has been presented in the document is the addition of Muslim enrollment both at the primary and upper primary levels of education which has been attempted for the first time in the country.   

            This document will further help to track progress of the States towards Universal Elementary Education (UEE) for Primary and Upper Primary levels as well as for a composite look at Elementary level of Education. The EDI as an annual exercise that will encourage the States to improve their performance.  It is expected that this exercise will help more effective targeting of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) to the most needy districts. The Government is already focusing on districts with substantial population of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Minorities, educationally backward districts where there are large numbers of out of school children, high gender gap and large infrastructure gaps. 

The EDI is developed keeping in mind four broad parameters of access, infrastructure, teacher and outcomes related indicators. The index takes into account 23 variables for calculating EDI. These variables are for Access (Percentage of habitations not Served, Availability of Schools per 1000 Population and Ratio of Primary to Upper Primary Schools/Sections), Infrastructure (Average Student-Classroom Ratio, School with Student-Classroom Ratio greater > 60, School without Drinking Water Facilities, School with Boy’s Toilet, School with Girl’s Toilet), Teachers( (Percentage of Female Teachers, Pupil-Teacher Ratio, School with Pupil Teacher Ratio > 60, Single- Teacher Schools (in schools with more than 15 students), Percentage of Schools with 3 or less Teachers, Teachers without Professional Qualification), Outcomes (Gross Enrolment Ratio – Overall, Scheduled Castes : Gross Enrolment Ratio, Scheduled Tribes: Gross Enrolment Ratio, Gender Parity Index in Enrolment, Repetition Rate, Drop-out Rate, Ratio of Exit class over Class 1 Enrolment (Primary stage only), Percentage of Passed Children to Total Enrolment, Percentage of Appeared Children passing with 60 per cent and above Marks).

            The composite EDI for elementary stage and separate ones for primary and upper primary levels are as per Annexure.  Delhi tops the EDI for primary level and ranked at 1^st.  Puducherry is 2^nd and Kerala is at No.3 and Bihar at 35^th Jharkhand at 34, Uttar Pradesh 24, West Bengal 30 and Arunachal Pradesh at 33. 

At the Upper Primary level, Kerala is on the top, followed by Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and Chandigarh.  Like Primary level, Bihar and Jharkhand are respectively ranked 35^th and 34^th at the upeer primary levels of education also.  For composite primary and upper primary level of education, Kerala is ranked 1^st followed by Puduchery, Delhi and Tamil Nadu.  Bihar and Jharkhand are also ranked at 35^th & 34^th  respectively. 

 In the previous year 2005-06 Kerala was also ranked 1^st in case of composite primary and upper primary  levels of education.  However, the Delhi which was ranked 2^nd in 2005-06 is moved to 3^rd position in the year 2006-07.