Indian Census 2011 records rise in literacy among disabled

More than half of the total disabled population in India are now literate, new numbers released from Census 2011 show. 

The literacy rate among the disabled has increased from 49.3 per cent in 2001 to 54.5 per cent in 2011. 

However, this is significantly lower than the overall literacy level of India which stands at 74 %

Both rural and urban areas saw an increase of around four percentage points in literacy rate of the disabled. 

Wider in rural areas

Among the urban disabled, 68 % are literate while the number stands at 49 % for disabled in the rural areas. 

The difference between literacy rate of males and females is wider in rural areas — 72 % of disabled males and 61 % of disabled females in urban areas are literate, a difference of nine percentage points. 

But in rural areas, the difference stands at 20% points, as 58 % of disabled males and only 38 % of disabled females are literate.