Himachal Pradesh has emerged as a frontrunner in the field of education, achieving the status of a fully literate state with a literacy rate of 99.30 per cent.
A government spokesperson said here on Sunday that the milestone, achieved years ahead of the national target of 2030, comes as a result of reforms initiated by Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu to modernize the education system and ensure holistic development of students.
A key decision in this direction is the introduction of the CBSE curriculum in government schools, finalized after extensive consultations with experts, which the chief minister called a historic step that will prepare students for competitive exams and align government schools with national standards.
The state government has made a budgetary provision of Rs. 9,849 crore for education in the current financial year, underlining its priority towards quality learning. English-medium instruction has been introduced from Class I, enabling children to develop confidence in both English and Hindi from the beginning of their schooling.
To strengthen institutions, the government has equipped schools with modern facilities and carried out rationalization to ensure a benchmark student-teacher ratio. Himachal today ranks among the top states on this parameter. In every assembly constituency, Rajiv Gandhi Government Model Day-Boarding Schools are being established with smart classrooms, libraries, sports facilities and other modern resources.
A total of 850 institutions have been declared centres of excellence, including 500 primary schools, 100 high schools, 200 senior secondary schools, 48 colleges and two Sanskrit colleges. These schools are being provided with adequate staff, laboratories and upgraded infrastructure.
For higher education, the Dr. Y S Parmar Vidyarthi Rin Yojana is being implemented to provide loans up to Rs 20 lakh at 1 per cent interest for studies in India and abroad. Modern subjects such as Artificial Intelligence and Data Science have been introduced.
The government has also filled more than 5,400 teaching posts and 7,000 other positions in the Education Department.
A new retirement policy requires teachers to retire at the end of the academic year, ensuring continuity in students’ learning.
The Education Department has been reorganized with separate directorates for school and higher education to ensure effective management. In another initiative, teachers and students are being sent on study tours. In 2024–25, 334 teachers and 50 students visited Singapore, while 310 students and 32 teachers undertook an educational tour to Kerala.
Alongside academics, nutrition is being addressed through the Mukhyamantri Bal Posahar Yojana, which provides nutritious meals to 5.35 lakh children in nearly 15,000 schools.
These reforms are showing results. Himachal rose from 21st place in the National Achievement Survey in 2021 to 5th place, while the ASER Report 2025 ranked the state among the best in reading ability of children.
From the next academic session, NCERT textbooks for Classes 6 to 12 will be contextualized with Himachali references. Content on temples, monasteries, forts, folk arts, fairs, festivals, heritage sites and freedom fighters such as General Zorawar Singh, Wazir Ram Singh Pathania, Dr. Y.S. Parmar, Captain Vikram Batra, Major Somnath Sharma and Captain Saurabh Kalia will be included.
With these initiatives, Himachal Pradesh is positioning itself as a national leader in literacy and quality education, creating new opportunities for its youth and laying the foundation for a progressive future.