Aizawl’s reading habit: how Mizoram keeps winning India’s literacy rankings

Ask anyone in Aizawl why Mizoram consistently tops India’s literacy tables and the answer is rarely about schools alone — it is about a habit. Evening readings, public libraries, and a language (Mizo) that families are fiercely protective of.

The state’s network of village libraries, some run entirely by volunteers, lends out more books per capita than most Indian metros. Publishers from Kolkata and Delhi now court Mizo translators.

Educators caution that smartphone video is eroding the habit, and a new generation of reading clubs has begun meeting in cafés to push back.