82 per cent of rural youth aged 15-25 use the Internet: Survey

New Delhi| A government survey showed that more than 82 per cent of young people aged 15 to 25 in rural areas use the Internet. At the same time, in urban areas, the figure is about 92 per cent. It also found that 95.7 per cent of people aged 15-24 use mobile phones in rural areas, compared with slightly less than 97 per cent in urban areas.

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation released the key findings of a Comprehensive Annual Modular Survey (CAMS) conducted from July 2022 to June 2023. It is part of the 79th round of the National Sample Survey (NSS). “82.1 per cent of young people aged 15-24 years in rural areas can access the Internet, compared to 91.8 per cent in urban areas”, an official statement said

The survey shows that 78.4 per cent of young people aged 15-24 years can send messages with an attached file. At the same time, 71.2 per cent of young people can use copy-paste tools. In addition, 26.8 per cent of young people are able to perform tasks such as advance tasks such as sending mail, searching for information and online banking.

According to information revealed by the survey, 95.1 per cent of people use telephones or mobile phones. 94.2 per cent of people in rural areas and 97.1 per cent in urban areas carry mobile phones.

According to the survey, computers (desktops, PCs, laptops) are used by 9.9 per cent of people. Computers are used by 4.2 per cent in rural areas and 21.6 per cent in urban areas.

The survey revealed, among other key findings, that 96.9 per cent of persons aged 15-24 are able to read and write simple statements by understanding them and are also able to perform simple arithmetic calculations. In the same age group, the figure is about 97.8 per cent for men and 95.9 per cent for women.

“The average year of schooling in formal education for persons aged 15 years and above is 8.4 years at the all India level and for persons aged 25 years and above it is 7.5 years”, the ministry said