Read the passage and answer the questions that follow:

1. Neha is only 11 years old – and should be in school. In August 2009, when she was around one year old, the Indian parliament had passed the landmark Right to Education Act that made education free and compulsory for children between the ages 6 and 14. Neha’s parents enrolled her in school when she was six, but she dropped out four years later, before completing elementary school. She had to help her mother with housework and look after her younger siblings.
2. School education in India has had its ups and down over the past few decades but one thing which has remained almost constant is the lopsided ratio between male and female students. Though the scene is not as dismal as it used to be, but we have a long way to go.
3. The All-India Survey of Higher Education published by the UGC last week shows the ratio of boys is higher than girls at almost every level of education. In broader terms, the student enrolment at the undergraduate level has 51% boys and 49% girls. The data reveals diploma too has a skewed gender distribution, with 66.8% boys and 33.2% girls. At the level of research streams also, male students outnumber females. In PhD courses across the country, 80.18% boys and 19.82% girls.
4. One of the most alarming fact is that the number of dropouts at school level is much higher in girls. In rural areas almost 50% of the girl students drop out after high school and almost 20% complete their higher secondary education. The number of girls completing their college education is merely 15% of the total female school going population, while female postgraduates in a rural area are a meagre 2% of that. However, the dropout rate among the girls is much lower in cities.
5. Literacy and level of education are basic indicators of the level of development achieved by a society. Higher levels of female literacy lead to a greater awareness and contributes to the improvement of economic and social conditions. It acts as a catalyst for social upliftment, population control and better health standards.