Daijiworld Media Network - Amaravati
Amaravati, Sep 4: Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and YSR Congress Party president Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Friday questioned Education Minister Nara Lokesh’s claim that the State’s literacy rate had increased from 72.6 per cent in 2024 to 82.1 per cent in 2026.
Reacting to the claim, Jagan expressed “shock” over what he described as the “misinformation propaganda” of the coalition government headed by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.
“It’s shocking to see the extent of misinformation propaganda by the present Andhra Pradesh Government,” he posted on X.
Jagan said no authority had released literacy statistics for calendar year 2026, as the year is yet to be completed.
He cited the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Annual Report 2023-24, prepared on the basis of a survey conducted by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India.
According to him, the report, covering the period from June 2023 to June 2024, placed Andhra Pradesh’s literacy rate at 72.6 per cent among those aged seven years and above, compared with 69.1 per cent in 2018-19.
Jagan further said the PLFS Annual Report for calendar year 2025, based on the NSSO survey conducted from January to December 2025, put the State’s literacy rate at 71.4 per cent for the same age group. The report was published on July 2, 2026, he said.
“When things are so amply clear, for a Government to make false claims and attempt to hoodwink the people of the State is most unfortunate,” Jagan said.
He also raised concerns over falling enrolment in government schools, claiming that enrolment in private schools was increasing following policy changes introduced by the present State government.
Jagan said this trend had been reflected in statistics released under UDISE by the Union Ministry of Education.
Instead of focusing on making education more accessible to children from economically weaker sections, the TDP-led alliance government was allegedly preoccupied with making what he termed false claims, Jagan said.
“It is advisable that the Minister of Education devotes greater time and effort towards his department and not to red book governance,” he remarked.