Lakshadweep Declared a Fully Literate Union Territory Under ULLAS
Lakshadweep was declared a fully literate Union Territory on 11 October 2026 by its Administrator.
The status was achieved under ULLAS: Nav Bharat Saaksharta Karyakram, a Centrally Sponsored Scheme of the Ministry of Education for adult literacy.
A door-to-door survey had found 1,113 adults who could not read or write across the islands. They were then taught basic reading, writing and arithmetic.
According to the UT's Education Department, all eligible learners passed the Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Assessment Test (FLNAT).
Teachers and supervisors held doorstep and home-based tests for learners who could not or did not want to go to exam centres, along with follow-up re-tests.
Lakshadweep had a literacy rate of about 91.85% in Census 2011, one of the highest in India.
ULLAS: Nav Bharat Saaksharta Karyakram (New India Literacy Programme)
ULLAS is the Government of India's programme to teach adults who never learnt to read, write or do basic arithmetic. It covers people aged 15 years and above who missed school or dropped out early. Its full name is ULLAS: Nav Bharat Saaksharta Karyakram, also called the New India Literacy Programme (NILP). ULLAS stands for "Understanding of Lifelong Learning for All in Society". It runs from 2022-23 to 2026-27 under the Ministry of Education, and it is the scheme under which states and UTs are now declared "fully literate".
Lakshadweep's declaration is a direct result of the ULLAS process: a survey found 1,113 non-literate adults, volunteers taught them, and all eligible learners passed the FLNAT. Because Lakshadweep is a UT without a legislature, the Centre funds the scheme fully there.
Constitutional Framework for Union Territories (Part VIII, Articles 239–241)
A Union Territory (UT) is an area of India governed directly by the Central Government, not by its own state government. The President runs each UT through an Administrator (called Lieutenant Governor in some UTs). The rules for UTs are in Part VIII of the Constitution, Articles 239 to 241. Lakshadweep is one of the UTs that has no elected legislature.
The full literacy declaration was made by Lakshadweep's Administrator, the President's representative under Article 239, showing how central schemes are carried out directly in a UT without an elected government.
- Lakshadweep declared fully literate: 11 October 2026, under ULLAS
- Non-literate adults identified in survey: 1,113; all eligible learners cleared the FLNAT
- Lakshadweep literacy (Census 2011): 91.85%; India: 74.04%
- ULLAS: 2022-23 to 2026-27; ₹1,037.90 crore; target 5 crore learners; adults 15+
- "Fully literate" benchmark: about 95% literacy
- First fully literate state under ULLAS: Mizoram (May 2025); first administrative unit: Ladakh (June 2024)
- Lakshadweep: UT since 1956, renamed 1973; capital Kavaratti; under Kerala High Court