India has made significant strides in promoting literacy and elementary education, especially after independence, recognizing that education is a fundamental driver of social and economic development. Various programmes and schemes have been designed to ensure universal literacy, improve quality of education, reduce dropout rates, and provide equitable access to education, particularly for disadvantaged groups such as girls, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and children from economically weaker sections. These initiatives are largely implemented under the framework of the National Education Policy, the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act (RTE) 2009, and other centrally and state-sponsored schemes. One of the foremost programmes aimed at universal literacy and elementary education is the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), launched in 2000-01. SSA is a flagship programme under the Ministry of Education (formerly Ministry of Human Resource Development) with the objective of achieving universalization of elementary education by providing quality education to all children in the age group of 6-14 years. The programme focuses on the enrolment of out-of-school children, retention of children, and improvement of the quality of education. SSA ensures the provision of free textbooks, uniforms, and learning materials. Special focus is given to children from marginalized communities. Additionally, SSA supports the construction of school infrastructure, including classrooms, toilets, drinking water facilities, and boundary walls, to create a child-friendly learning environment. Teacher training and capacity-building programmes are central to SSA’s objectives, enhancing pedagogical skills and enabling teachers to cater to diverse classroom needs. The Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) complements SSA by focusing on secondary