12 Mar 2013

When ADRI was entrusted with the task of setting up the State Resource Centre (SRC) for adult education in Bihar by the National Literacy Mission (NLM), it was felt that the working of the SRC should combine both traditional and innovative programmes. It was also felt that if Bihar was to transcend into a ‘knowledge society' in the 21st century, the banishment of illiteracy should be the key strategy. This required a proactive role not only on the part of the government, but also of the people in general and civil society organisations in particular. While the NLM was playing the role of a proactive government agency, ADRI tried to enthuse the other two segments - the people and the civil society.

  The traditional agenda of all the SRCs has three dimensions - material preparation, training, and monitoring. However, right from the beginning, the SRC, ADRI has understood the need of making innovative interventions. For example, it was realised that the prime reason behind a poor literacy rate in Bihar was the indifference of its small intelligentsia to the adult literacy campaign. One of the activities of SRC, ADRI was, therefore, to sensitise the local intelligentsia on literacy concerns. With this goal, SRC, ADRI established Akshar Bihar, the forum which has been organising several meetings in different districts of Bihar and a regular annual gathering in the state capital for about two decades now. After the bifurcation of the state, the forum opened its second office in Ranchi for Akshar Jharkhand. These forums are being run in association with a leading Hindi Daily (earlier Hindustan, now Prabhat Khabar) which ensures a wider dissemination of information on forums' activities. All these efforts have indeed elevated the status of the campaign in the minds of the local intelligentsia. The initial idea to involve the media with the literacy campaign emanated from the absence of any academic foundation in society, particularly in the context of Bihar, which could transcend from information to knowledge growth. Though the movement for social liberation in Bihar was egalitarian and democratic, it was devoid of 'knowledge' foundation. It was, thus, felt that if Bihar was to be brought back on the rails of a 'knowledge' civilisation, particularly in the background of competitive electoral populism and in the absence of authentic social movement, it was only the media which could lead Bihar to a ‘knowledge society'.   

  Akshar Bihar was started with these very aims to recognize the efforts of thousands of volunteers committed to the cause of literacy. Awards under four categories - Akshar Shri, Akshar Ratna, Akshar Bhushan, and Akshar Vibhushan - are presented to the volunteers.       

Akshar Bihar Function	Date	Chief Guest
1st  Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	June 19 1995	Shri Laloo Prasad, Chief Minister, Bihar.
2nd Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	June 19 1996	Shri Jay Prakash Narayan Yadav, Education Minister, Bihar
3rd Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	March 27 1998	Shri A R Kidwai, Hon'ble Governor, Bihar
4th  Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	March 22 1999	Smt. Rabri Devi, Chief Minister, Bihar
5th  Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	March 25 2000	Smt. Rabri Devi, Chief Minister, Bihar
6th  Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	January 31 2001	Smt. Rabri Devi, Chief Minister, Bihar
7th  Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	February 21 2002	Smt. Rabri Devi, Chief Minister, Bihar
8th  Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	February 10 2003	Smt. Rabri Devi, Chief Minister, Bihar
9th  Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	February 28 2004	Smt. Rabri Devi, Chief Minister, Bihar
10th  Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	December 4 2004	Smt. Rabri Devi, Chief Minister, Bihar
11th  Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	February 21 2006	Shri Sushil Kumar Modi, Deputy Chief Minister, Bihar
12th  Annual Function of  Akshar Bihar.	March 24 2007	Shri Nitish Kumar, Chief Minister, Bihar
13th  Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	March 7 2008	Shri Nitish Kumar, Chief Minister, Bihar
14th  Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	February 18 2009	Shri Sushil Kumar Modi, Deputy Chief Minister, Bihar
15th Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	April 7, 2010	Shri Nitish Kumar, Chief Minister Bihar
16th Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	March 29, 2011	Shri Sushil Kumar Modi, Deputy Chief Minister, Bihar
17th Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	March 28, 2012	Shri Sushil Kumar Modi, Deputy Chief Minister, Bihar
18th Annual Function of Akshar Bihar.	March 12, 2013	Shri Sushil Kumar Modi, Deputy Chief Minister, Bihar