PANCHTHAR: Panchthar district was declared the 18th fully literate district of the country on Saturday. The government announces fully declared district to the ones crossing over 95 per cent literacy rate.

The announcement was made as 11,414 persons out of 14,223 illiterate of 15 to 59 years turned literate in the district. The government has planned to make all citizens literate by 2017.

However, the District Education Office said that remaining 2,809 are yet to be literate.

District Education Officer Gyanmani Nepal said remaining others also would be made literate gradually.

On the occasion, UCPN-Maoist lawmaker Shreeprasad Jagebu praised the move terming it a stride in education.

Likewise, Attariya Municipality was also declared the first literate municipality in the Far-Western Region.

At a programme organised in the municipality on Saturday, 58-year-old Dal Bahadur Malla, a class two student in Chandeshwori Lower Secondary School, made such announcement writing on the white board. The total population of the municipality is nearly 80,000.