Uttarakhand has officially become India's sixth fully literate state after meeting the adult literacy benchmarks set under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 through the ULLAS, Understanding of Lifelong Learning for All in Society, programme.

The recognition follows the state's achievement of a 98.7 percent literacy rate, well above the Union government's benchmark of 95 percent required for a state to be declared fully literate. The proposal received the approval of Governor Gurmeet Singh after being cleared by the state government.

With this milestone, Uttarakhand joins Mizoram, Goa, Tripura, Himachal Pradesh and Sikkim among India's fully literate states.

The achievement is credited to the implementation of the ULLAS programme, launched under NEP 2020 to provide functional literacy to adults who missed formal schooling. The programme focuses not only on reading and writing but also on numeracy, digital literacy, financial literacy and essential life skills.

According to officials, Uttarakhand's literacy rate rose sharply from 83.8% in 2023-24 to 98.7% in 2025, one of the fastest improvements recorded by any state. The progress was driven by coordinated efforts involving government departments, local administrations and volunteers who identified and educated non-literate adults across the state.

The declaration marks a significant milestone in the state's education journey and aligns with the national objective of achieving universal adult literacy by 2027 under the ULLAS programme. Officials said the focus will now shift towards strengthening lifelong learning and expanding digital and financial literacy among citizens.