Monday August 10, 2009, 10:17 am
Parliament has adopted ‘The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Bill, 2009,’ which envisages free and compulsory education to children in the 6-14 age group with the Lok Sabha approving it by voice vote on Tuesday. The Rajya Sabha passed the Bill on July 20.

Replying to the debate, Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal termed the Centre’s move a “national enterprise that would help shape India’s future.” The legislation would ensure every child’s right to education, and the obligation of the government to impart it. Once the President gave assent to the Bill, getting education would be a fundamental right of the child.

The law was brought not to interfere with the State government’s attempts to provide elementary education. On the medium of instruction, he said there was a provision to provide elementary education, as far as possible, in the mother tongue of the child. The law would ensure that the child got free, compulsory and quality education by qualified teachers.

The curriculum would be less rigorous and it would ensure all-round development of children.

While 25 per cent of seats in every private school would be allocated for children from disadvantaged groups including differently-abled children at the entry level, as far as minority institutions were concerned up to 50 per cent of those seats could be offered to students from their communities.

Stressing the need for a big boost to children’s education, Mr. Sibal said that out of every 100 children attending elementary school only 12 reached the graduation level; in Europe it was 50-70 (students reaching college from the elementary level) and the global average 27. The Centre wanted to increase India’s average to 15 by 2012 and to 30-35 by 2020, he said.

On infrastructure, he said there was a provision for establishing recognition authority in every State under which all schools would have to fulfil the minimum requirement of infrastructure within three years.

Otherwise, they would lose recognition. Similarly appointment of teachers had to be approved by the academic committee, he pointed out.