SPATIO - TEMPORAL ANALYSIS OF DISPARITY IN LITERACY PATTERN OF ALIPURDUAR DISTRICT OF WEST BENGAL, INDIA

Abstract

Literacy is an indicator for measuring wellbeing of the society and it helps for further planning strategy of human development. The rural-urban and male-female literacy rate of an administrative region has direct or indirect influenced on socio- economic as well as socio-political development. Literacy rate always differ from place to place according the spatio-temporal characteristics the region. Similarly, in 2011 Census, literacy rate of India was 74.04 % and literacy rate of West Bengal was 76.26 % where an uneven spatial distribution of literacy rate was recorded among several districts of West Bengal. Specially in different blocks of Alipurduar District, there is significant variation of literacy rate in rural-urban as well as male-female literacy for its geographical and diverse socio-cultural behavior. Therefore, the present study is tried to compare and contrast on spatio-temporal change of literacy trend in Alipurduar District through the Sopher’s Disparity Index method. The result shows that change of disparity in literacy pattern in between 2001 to 2011 census is differ from block to block. It is also observed that the disparity of rural-urban as well as male-female literacy rate has been decreased from 2001 to 2011, but not in satisfactory line. Some attempts have also been made to point out short and long term development strategy to eradicate disparity in rural-urban and male female literacy among the inter-blocks of the District.