The State Resource Centre (SRC) for adult education was set up in 1995 at ADRI with support from the National Literacy Mission. As elsewhere SRC (ADRI) was envisaged as a crucial element of the literacy campaign in the then undivided Bihar. After the bifurcation of the State, 18 of those 27 districts served by SRC (ADRI) fall under the Jharkhand and the remaining are under the truncated Bihar.

The key responsibility of SRC is to provide academic and technical support for the on going adult literacy programme. However the National Literacy Mission mandated following main tasks for the SRC:

• To provide quality reading materials to aid the on-going literacy programmes
• To provide training to literacy functionaries on both organizational and pedagogic issues
• To organize seminars and workshops, which help in upgrading awareness and skills of literacy functionaries
• To develop literacy materials like Primers for Basic and post literacy and other supplementary reading materials for the neo-literates,
• Creation of environment conductive to the propagation of literacy
• Monitoring and Evaluation of literacy programmes

SRC Patna has contributed significantly to the literacy campaign in Bihar through its traditional agenda as indicated by the National Literacy Mission, as well as through number of innovative interventions, designed in response to the specificities of the region that it had to serve.

The challenges which confronted the SRC Patna were manifold. Apart from the lowest literacy rates in Bihar, there were several other factors that confounded the problem. First, the State was far from homogenous linguistically, with several dialogues being spoken here, including the tribal languages. Secondly Bihar is home of the largest segment of the scheduled caste and scheduled tribe population, the social categories which are most disadvantaged vis-à-vis literacy and education. Finally a large part of the areas where SRC, Patna functions is characterized by militant agrarian movements in rural areas which greatly hamper the literacy campaign. Overcoming all these hurdles SRC Patna has been successful in making an effective intervention towards the spread of literacy in the State.

STATUS IN TERMS OF LITERACY STAGES OF DISTRICTS OF BIHAR UNDER THE JURISDICTION OF SRC, ADRI, PATNA AS ON MARCH 17, 2009.S.

* = CEP Proposal Submitted
** = Arwal is a new district separated from Jehanabad. TLC & PLP Phase of Jehanabad had covered the areas of Arwal also.
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