Muslims in the Twenty-first Century: an Analytical Study of the Socio-Economic and Educational Status of Indian Muslims.

India's Muslims, over 177 million, represent the world's third-largest population next only to Indonesia and Pakistan. In India, they constitute about 14.2% of total population and are the second-largest religious community in the country. But, Indian Muslims are backward socially, economically, educationally, and politically. The present paper first attempts to analyse, from the available data, the Muslim backwardness especially in education. It will also explore the issues and challenges the Muslim community is facing. Various socio-economic indicators reveal a dismal picture. Muslim shave been systematically deprived of their rights and are stuck at the lowest socio-economic stratum in relation to other minority religious communities in India. The paper, hence, suggests various community initiatives through economic betterment and educational advancement--religious and modem--critical thinking, proper awareness and positive engagement and management as the key remedial measures to alleviate their backwardness. It also advocates that if all affluent people pay their zakat; and there is then the proper utilisation of zakat and other waqf endowments this would have tremendous potential towards betterment of downtrodden Muslims. Owing to their significant numbers, the well-being of Indian Muslims place great implications for the overall well-being of Indian society in particular and for the Muslim world in general. Therefore, the paper demands the government has to play a constructive role in addressing the grievance of the Muslim community; to implement recommendations made by various committee groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]