Editing Himachal Pradesh (section)

== Education ==
{{Main|Education in Himachal Pradesh}}
{{See also|List of institutions of higher education in Himachal Pradesh}}
[[File:Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital at Shimla.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|[[Indira Gandhi Medical College]] and Hospital at [[Shimla]]]]

At the time of Independence, Himachal Pradesh had a literacy rate of 8% – one of the lowest in the country.<ref name="Planning Commission -2017">{{cite web |url=http://planningcommission.gov.in/plans/stateplan/sdr_hp/sdr_hpch7.pdf |page=14 |title=Himachal Pradesh Development Report: Chapter 7 Education|access-date=26 April 2018 |publisher=[[Planning Commission (India)]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215054945/http://planningcommission.gov.in/plans/stateplan/sdr_hp/sdr_hpch7.pdf|archive-date=15 February 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> By 2011, the literacy rate surged to 82.8%,<ref name="HPOP" /><ref>{{Cite magazine |url=http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/himachal-female-literacy-rate-touches-80-per-cent/1/273153.html |magazine=[[India Today]] |title=In Himachal, where 90 per cent people live in villages, female literacy rate touches 80 per cent|access-date=31 May 2016 |date=26 May 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160807035753/http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/himachal-female-literacy-rate-touches-80-per-cent/1/273153.html|archive-date=7 August 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> making Himachal one of the most-literate states in the country. There are over 10,000 primary schools, 1,000 secondary schools and more than 1,300 high schools in the state.<ref name="eduprofile22">{{cite web |url=http://himachal.nic.in/educ |title=Factual source on Education in Himachal |publisher=Government of India|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070430135006/http://himachal.nic.in/educ/|archive-date=30 April 2007|access-date=16 March 2007}}</ref> In meeting the constitutional obligation to make primary education compulsory, Himachal became the first state in India to make elementary education accessible to every child.<ref name="eduprofile32">{{cite web |url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20030629/himachal.htm |title=Educational updates- Himachal |last=Dua |first=H.K. |work=The Tribune Trust, 2006 |publisher=The Tribune House|access-date=16 March 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070209173926/http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20030629/himachal.htm|archive-date=9 February 2007|url-status=live}}</ref> Himachal Pradesh is an exception to the nationwide gender bias in education levels.<ref>De, Anuradha & Khera, Reetika & Samson, Meera & Shiva Kumar, A. K., 2011. ''"Probe Revisited: A Report on Elementary Education in India''", OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198071570.</ref> The state has a female literacy rate of around 76%.<ref>Government of India. Census of India (2011)</ref> In addition, school enrolment and participation rates for girls are almost universal at the primary level. While higher levels of education do reflect a gender-based disparity, Himachal is still significantly ahead of other states at bridging the gap.<ref name="Dreze-1999">{{Cite journal |last=Dreze |first=J. |date=May 1999 |title=A surprising exception. Himachal's success in promoting female education |journal=Manushi |issue=112 |pages=12–17 |issn=0257-7305 |pmid=12295760}}</ref> The [[Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh|Hamirpur]] District in particular stands out for high literacy rates across all metrics of measurement.<ref name="eduprofile4">{{cite web |url=http://www.himachaleducation.net/EducationProfile/ |title=Educational Profile of Himachal Pradesh |work=General Overview of Education in Himachal|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080202005233/http://www.himachaleducation.net/educationprofile|archive-date=2 February 2008|access-date=16 March 2007}}</ref>

The state government has played an instrumental role in the rise of literacy in the state by spending a significant proportion of the state's GDP on education. During the first six five-year plans, most of the development expenditure in the education sector was utilised in quantitative expansion, but after the seventh five-year-plan the state government switched emphasis on qualitative improvement and modernisation of education.<ref name="Planning Commission -2017" /> To raise the number of the teaching staff at primary schools they appointed over 1000 teacher aids through the Vidya Upasak Yojna in 2001.<ref name="Planning Commission -2017" /> The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan is another HP government initiative that not only aims for universal elementary education but also encourages communities to engage in the management of schools.<ref name="Edumis-2018">{{cite web |url=http://www.edumis.hp.gov.in/homeContent/20 |title=Himachal Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan & Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan |website=edumis.hp.gov.in|access-date=26 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180426213716/http://www.edumis.hp.gov.in/homeContent/20|archive-date=26 April 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> The Rashtriya Madhayamic Shiksha Abhiyan launched in 2009, is a similar scheme but focuses on improving access to quality secondary education.<ref name="Edumis-2018" />

[[File:Institue OF Advance Studues In Shimla.JPG|thumb|left|[[Indian Institute of Advanced Study]] at [[Shimla]]]]
[[File:IIT Mandi Campus from Griffon Peak Jan 2020 D72 13785.jpg|thumb|right|IIT Mandi campus, Jan '20]]
The standard of education in the state has reached a considerably high level as compared to other states in India<ref name="eduprofile4" /> with several reputed educational institutes for higher studies. The [[Baddi University of Emerging Sciences and Technologies]], [[Indian Institute of Technology Mandi]], [[Indian Institute of Management Sirmaur]], [[Himachal Pradesh University]] in Shimla, Central University of Himachal Pradesh, Dharamsala, [[National Institute of Technology, Hamirpur]], [[Indian Institute of Information Technology Una]], [[Alakh Prakash Goyal University]], [[Maharaja Agrasen University]], [[Himachal Pradesh National Law University]] are some of the notable universities in the state. [[Indira Gandhi Medical College]] and Hospital in Shimla, [[Dr. Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College Kangra|Dr. Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College]] in [[Kangra, Himachal Pradesh|Kangra]], Rajiv Gandhi Government Post Graduate Ayurvedic College in Paprola and Homoeopathic Medical College & Hospital in Kumarhatti are the prominent medical institutes in the state. Besides these, there is a Government Dental College in Shimla which is the state's first recognised dental institute.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.igmcshimla.org/about_IGMC.htm |title=IGMC-home |publisher=Igmcshimla.org |access-date=7 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222170103/http://www.igmcshimla.org/about_IGMC.htm |archive-date=22 February 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The state government has also decided to start three major nursing colleges to develop the healthcare system of the state.<ref name="eduprofile" /> [[Chaudhary Sarwan Kumar Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya|CSK Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishwavidyalya Palampur]] is one of the most renowned hill agriculture institutes in the world. [[Dr. Yashwant Singh Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry]] has earned a unique distinction in India for imparting teaching, research and extension education in horticulture, forestry and allied disciplines. Further, state-run [[Jawaharlal Nehru Government Engineering College]] was inaugurated in 2006 at [[Sundernagar]].<ref name="eduprofile">{{cite web |url=http://www.himachaleducation.net/EducationProfile/ |title=Educational Profile of Himachal Pradesh| access-date = 16 March 2007 |work=General Overview of Education in Himachal |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080202005233/http://www.himachaleducation.net/educationprofile |archive-date=2 February 2008}}</ref>
Himachal Pradesh also hosts a campus of the fashion college, [[National Institute of Fashion Technology]] (NIFT) in [[Kangra, Himachal Pradesh|Kangra]].