Educational Progress in Rural Bengal-A Study of Four Villages

A Study of Four Villages Saroj Kanti Chaudhuri An attempt is made in this article to assess educational progress among backward castes in rural West Bengal. Four villages of south Bengal in which Scheduled Castes and Tribes predominate numerically, hive been studied. The period covered is roughly that of the Second and Third Plans, The conclusion that emerges is that the educational condition of the backward castes did not improve during this period. At the end of the period from 65 to 96 per cent of the backward caste population was still illiterate. Among females, illiteracy levels ranged between 90 and 100 per cent.