Proficiency levels in Language and Maths for all Grades (NAS 2011) Source: National Achievement Survey, 20218 On disaggregating the above data, various kinds of access-related challenges of equitable, inclusive, and quality education become evident. These are briefly discussed below. 2.1 Challenges relating to access to equitable education 2.1.1. Regional differences Urban areas tend to have better-equipped schools, qualified teachers, and better access to resources, while rural areas may not always have these advantages. This ruralurban divide perpetuates unequal access to quality education, resulting in disparities in academic outcomes and opportunities. However, urban poor children constitute another group of children whose participation in education remains low. As per the 75thround of household survey by National Sample Survey9 (NSS) in 2017-18, the number of Out of School Children (OOSC) in the 6-to-13-years age group is at 5.2 percent. However, this figure hides wide variations in the urban and rural situations. While 3.3 per cent of children in urban areas are out-of-school, the figure is 5.8 per cent in rural areas. Similarly, while the national average Adjusted Net Enrolment Ratio10 (ANER) for primary education was 97.3 per cent in 2019-20, the ANER ranged from 100 per cent in some states (Assam, Delhi, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Punjab, Telangana, Tripura, Uttarakhand, and West Bengal) to lower in others. This situation has received extremely focused attention by states ever since, and initiatives such as the Vidya Samiksha Kendra, NIPUN Bharat, and Samagra Shiksha have reduced these gaps substantially. In fact, the annual average dropout rate has come down to only 1.5 per cent at the primary level and 3 per cent National Achievement Survey, 2021, Ministry of Education, Government of India, https://nas.gov.in/ report-card/2021. 9 Household Social Consumption on Education in India, NSS 75thRound, 2017-18, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India. https://mospi.gov.in/sites/default/files/ publication_reports/Report_585_75th_round_Education_final_1507_0.pdf 10 UDISE+ 2021-22, Ministry of Education, Government of India, https://udiseplus.gov.in/#/page/ publications. 8 Journal of the National Human Rights Commission, Vol. 22, 2023 43