Abstract

 Scheduled Caste (SC) population constitutes a sizeable portion of the total population of Assam accounting for 6.32 per cent according to the 2011 Census. They comprise a socially backward class in the Indian society's downtrodden illiterate people of the Indian social fabric. Literacy and educational attainment are considered the hallmark of a modern society. The traits of the modern society, such as, industrialisation, modernisation and urbanisation are closely associated with the level of literacy and education. In the middle part of the 20th century, the literacy rate among them was very low. However, in the later part of the 20th century and in the current millennium due to the developmental measures implemented by both the Central as well as State Governments of India and due to the influence of mass media, there has been a change in the pattern of literacy.
 The literacy rate of the SC population in the Brahmaputra Valley, Assam was 66.34 per cent in 2011 against 61.15 per cent for general population, which is slightly lower than the SC population in the Valley. The study of the pattern of literacy among various social groups of SCs in the study area provides an insight into the socio-economic situations. An attempt has been made in this paper to analyse the spatial pattern of literacy and its variations among the scheduled caste population in the Brahmaputra Valley, Assam.
Highlights
The pattern of literacy and education of the Scheduled Castes (SCs) population is at the heart of understanding of this research
The SC population is mainly distributed in the rural areas of the Brahmaputra Valley
Low literacy among SCs has been the result of several factors—first, they are mostly engaged in traditional occupations as labourers in agriculture and household industries
Summary
The pattern of literacy and education of the Scheduled Castes (SCs) population is at the heart of understanding of this research. Literacy and educational attainment level are considered as significant factors influencing the socio-economic development of any society. The quality of human society can be judged through educational attainment level. Assam, located in the North Eastern region of India is lagging far behind in literacy and education and so is the case of the Brahmaputra valley of the state. I begin this paper with a brief background
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