While compulsory education for children up to the age of 14 is enshrined as a directive principle in the Indian Constitution, the reality is abysmally different. This study involving a sample of 93 schools across Karnataka reveals that access to primary education and its quality, retention and drop-out rates are ruled by and related to prevailing caste, class and gender divides in the region. Integrated government-supported development projects seeking to reduce widespread inequalities, alleviate poverty and provide adequate support programmes would in turn have a positive and long lasting impact on the literacy level.