
Shortcut Trick
Males = 192,000 and Total Population = 384,000, so Females = 192,000, giving a Male to Female ratio of 1 : 1.
For groups with equal ratio, the overall percentage is the simple average of their individual percentages.
⇒ (Male Literacy % + Female Literacy %) ÷ 2 = Overall Literacy %
⇒ (53% + Female Literacy %) ÷ 2 = 69%
⇒ Female Literacy % = 138% − 53% = 85%
∴ The correct answer is 85%.

Alternate Method
Total Population: 384,000 (69% Literate)
Males
192,000
53% Literate
Females
192,000
? % Literate
Given:
Total population = 384,000
Number of males = 192,000
Overall literacy rate = 69%
Male literacy rate = 53%
Formula Used:
Number of females = Total population − Number of males
Percentage = (Part value ÷ Total value) × 100
Calculations:
⇒ Number of females = 384,000 − 192,000 = 192,000
⇒ Total literate population = (69 ÷ 100) × 384,000 = 264,960
⇒ Total literate males = (53 ÷ 100) × 192,000 = 101,760
⇒ Total literate females = Total literate population − Total literate males
⇒ Total literate females = 264,960 − 101,760 = 163,200
⇒ Percentage of literate females = (163,200 ÷ 192,000) × 100
⇒ Percentage of literate females = 85%
∴ The correct answer is 85%.

Additional Information
Weighted Average in Percentages
If two groups have quantities N1 and N2 with percentages P1 and P2, the overall percentage is P = (N1×P1 + N2×P2) ÷ (N1 + N2).
Mixture and Alligation Trick
This problem can also be solved using the alligation ratio: Ratio of Males to Females = (Overall % − Female %) : (Male % − Overall %). Plugging in the values gives 1 : 1 = (69 − x) : (69 − 53), which mathematically simplifies to x = 85%.
Base Independence Rule
When dealing strictly with ratios and percentages in exam scenarios, absolute large numbers like 384,000 are often decoys. Realising the male to female ratio is simply 1:1 enables solving the problem directly using the average formula without computing actual absolute values.