With new technological developments, new communication technologies such as satellite television broadcasting, long-distance telephony, computers and telecommunications, have sparked of optimism about their potential to harness educational development in India. With the convergence of satellite technology with the new information technologies at the global level, information and communication technologies have assumednew meaning and relevance for distance education and training. The hallmark of new technology is its distributive power and its ability to reach a large number of learners in dispersed locations. However, discussions and debates on implications of new communication technologies for distance education and training have focused primarily on school education and higher education. This paper highlights neglect of promoting adult literacy education through open and dislahce education and examines some of the recent experiments in using radio, television, and computers for imparting literacy in India. The question is not about using new information and communication technologies (ICTs) for adult learning, but about how the ICTs can be used for imparting basic literacy skills to the vast population of illiterate andsemi-literate adult learners, whose learning needs are not yet addressed by the existing system of distance education in India.