Tamil Nadu: Tamil Nadu has outperformed Assam to take the top slot in terms of enrolled children in primary and upper primary levels of education, across the whole of India.

The findings carried out by Industry body Assochaam revealed that the Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) of Tamil Nadu has touched 100%, while Assam, which had the highest GER during the period of 2001-02, now stands far below the southern state.

Himachal Pradesh has secured the second rank, followed by Mizoram, Manipur, Goa, Tripura, Kerala and Gujarat. The findings are based on the data of 2006-07, sourced from the Central Statistical Organization and the Delhi government.

Interestingly, Delhi's performance in education continues to be a matter of concern as its GER ranking slipped from 16th place to 17th this year. "Though Delhi's per capita income exceeds Rs 34,000 per annum, its GER is just 71% as against 100% of Tamil Nadu," Assocham president Venugopal Dhoot said.

The success of Tamil Nadu lies in the fact that the state not only implemented information and communication technology schemes but also offered lucrative scholarships to students up to primary and upper-primary levels through private sector participation. Besides expanding educational institutes, the state also offered hostel and eating facilities to girls. , Mr. Dhoot pointed out.

GER, which analyzes academic enrollment, provides a rough indication of the primary, secondary and tertiary level of education among residents in any region. GER is considered as one of the basic indicators of the Human Development Index (HDI), which measures wide-ranging social indicators for countries worldwide. A higher GER in a particular region implies a better HDI. India ranks 128 out of 177 countries in the HDI ranking done by United Nations.