Despite a century old struggle for social and political reform and independence, literacy levels remain discouragingly low among substantial sections of the scheduled castes in Maharashtra. However, the rise in literacy rates has been marked by variations within the scheduled castes as borne out by census reports from 1961 onwards. The variations are based on levels of development, the migrancy factor and willingness to take on newer occupations, as well as traditions of hierarchy that continue to persist in the social system.