HISTORY OF GIRLS’ EDUCATION IN WEST BENGAL: REFORM MOVEMENTS AND INDIAN KNOWLEDGE TRADITIONS

Abstract

Literacy is considered as one of the indicators of educational development of a nation and an essential but necessary step towards education. The advancements in science and technology have induced rapid changes in the material and non-material environment all over the world. The fast-changing scenario, however, in turn warrants higher level of understanding on the part of human being to adapt themselves to new environment and conditions. In a country like India with 74.04 percent literacy and with 25.96 percent illiterate masses (Census 2011), there are many impediments in the way of progress and growth. Since there is a direct and functional relationship between literacy and productivity on the one hand and literacy and overall quality of human life represented by better health, hygiene, sanitation and family welfare on the other, educating the illiterates becomes very significant. Although enrolment rates for girls in primary education have achieved near parity with boys, with a Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) of 96.3% (Ministry of Education, 2021), substantial challenges persist at the secondary level, where the GER drops to 79.5% (UNESCO, 2022). Socio-economic barriers, including poverty and the need for girls to contribute to household labour, significantly impede their educational progress (Kabeer, 2005). Cultural factors such as early marriage further exacerbate these challenges, with 27% of girls married before the age of 18 (UNICEF, 2020). While governmental initiatives like the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) scheme and the Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV) program have made strides in addressing these issues, regional disparities and inadequate infrastructure in rural areas continue to undermine these efforts (Dreze and Sen, 2013; Government of India, 2020).