Madrassas are "unsuitable" places for children to receive "proper education" and the education imparted there is "not comprehensive" and is against the provisions of the Right to Education Act, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has told the Supreme Court.

The child rights body told the top court that children, who are not in formal schooling system, are deprived of their fundamental right to elementary education, including entitlements such as midday meal, uniform etc.

The NCPCR said madrassas merely teaching from a few NCERT books in the curriculum is a "mere guise" in the name of imparting education and does not ensure that the children are receiving formal and quality education.

"A madrassa is not only a unsuitable/unfit place to receive 'proper' education but also in absence of entitlements as provided under Sections 19, 21,22, 23, 24, 25, and 29 of the RTE Act," it said.

"Further, madrassas do not only render an unsatisfactory and insufficient model for education but also have an arbitrary mode of working which is wholly in absence of a standardised curriculum and functioning," the NCPCR said in its written submissions filed before the top court.

The child rights body stated that due to the absence of provisions of the RTE Act, 2009, the madrassas are also deprived of entitlement as in Section 21 of the Act of 2009.

"A madrassa works in an arbitrary manner and runs in an overall violation of the Constitutional mandate, RTE Act and the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015. It cannot be overlooked that a child getting education in such an Institution will be devoid of basic knowledge of school curriculum which is provided in a school.

"A school is defined under Section 2(n) of the RTE Act, 2009, which means any recognised school imparting elementary education. A madrassa being out of this definition has no right to compel children or their families to receive madrassa education," the NCPCR said.

It said most of the madrassas fail to provide a holistic environment to students, including planning social events, or extracurricular activities for 'experiential learning.

In a breather to about 17 lakh madrassa students, the apex court on April 5 had stayed an order of the Allahabad High Court that scrapped the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education Act, 2004 calling it "unconstitutional" and violative of the principle of secularism.

Observing that the issues raised in the petitions merit closer reflection, a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud had issued notices to the Centre, the Uttar Pradesh Government and others on the pleas against the high court order.

The top court said had the high court "prima facie" misconstrued the provisions of the Act, which does not provide for any religious instruction.

The high court had on March 22 declared the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education Act, 2004, "unconstitutional" and violative of the principle of secularism, and asked the state government to accommodate students in the formal schooling system.

The high court had declared the law ultra vires on a writ petition filed by advocate Anshuman Singh Rathore. 
It had said the state has "no power to create a board for religious education or to establish a board for school education only for a particular religion and philosophy associated with it."

"We hold that the Madarsa Act, 2004, is violative of the principle of secularism, which is a part of the basic structure of the Constitution," the high court had said.

The petitioner had challenged the constitutionality of the UP Madarsa Board as well as objected to the management of madrassas by the Minority Welfare Department instead of the education department.

Disclaimer: This story has been published from a news agency feed with minimal edits to adhere to WION's style guide. The headline may have been changed to better reflect the content of the story or to make it more suitable for WION&nbsp;audience. 
&nbsp;

Madrassas are "unsuitable" places for children to receive "proper education" and the education imparted there is "not comprehensive" and is against the provisions of the Right to Education Act, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has told the Supreme Court.

Madrassas are "unsuitable" places for children to receive "proper education" and the education imparted there is "not comprehensive" and is against the provisions of the Right to Education Act, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has told the Supreme Court. The child rights body told the top court that children, who are not in formal schooling system, are deprived of their fundamental right to elementary education, including entitlements such as midday meal, uniform etc. The NCPCR said madrassas merely teaching from a few NCERT books in the curriculum is a "mere guise" in the name of imparting education and does not ensure that the children are receiving formal and quality education. "A madrassa is not only a unsuitable/unfit place to receive 'proper' education but also in absence of entitlements as provided under Sections 19, 21,22, 23, 24, 25, and 29 of the RTE Act," it said. "Further, madrassas do not only render an unsatisfactory and insufficient model for education but also have an arbitrary mode of working which is wholly in absence of a standardised curriculum and functioning," the NCPCR said in its written submissions filed before the top court. The child rights body stated that due to the absence of provisions of the RTE Act, 2009, the madrassas are also deprived of entitlement as in Section 21 of the Act of 2009. "A madrassa works in an arbitrary manner and runs in an overall violation of the Constitutional mandate, RTE Act and the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015. It cannot be overlooked that a child getting education in such an Institution will be devoid of basic knowledge of school curriculum which is provided in a school. "A school is defined under Section 2(n) of the RTE Act, 2009, which means any recognised school imparting elementary education. A madrassa being out of this definition has no right to compel children or their families to receive madrassa education," the NCPCR said. It said most of the madrassas fail to provide a holistic environment to students, including planning social events, or extracurricular activities for 'experiential learning. In a breather to about 17 lakh madrassa students, the apex court on April 5 had stayed an order of the Allahabad High Court that scrapped the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education Act, 2004 calling it "unconstitutional" and violative of the principle of secularism. Observing that the issues raised in the petitions merit closer reflection, a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud had issued notices to the Centre, the Uttar Pradesh Government and others on the pleas against the high court order. The top court said had the high court "prima facie" misconstrued the provisions of the Act, which does not provide for any religious instruction. The high court had on March 22 declared the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education Act, 2004, "unconstitutional" and violative of the principle of secularism, and asked the state government to accommodate students in the formal schooling system. The high court had declared the law ultra vires on a writ petition filed by advocate Anshuman Singh Rathore. It had said the state has "no power to create a board for religious education or to establish a board for school education only for a particular religion and philosophy associated with it." "We hold that the Madarsa Act, 2004, is violative of the principle of secularism, which is a part of the basic structure of the Constitution," the high court had said. The petitioner had challenged the constitutionality of the UP Madarsa Board as well as objected to the management of madrassas by the Minority Welfare Department instead of the education department. Disclaimer: This story has been published from a news agency feed with minimal edits to adhere to WION's style guide. The headline may have been changed to better reflect the content of the story or to make it more suitable for WION audience.

Madrassas 'unsuitable' place for children to receive proper education: India's child protection agency to SC

RTÉ, Ireland's state broadcaster has issued an apology after it received severe criticism for airing a comedy sketch that depicted God as a rapist.&nbsp; 
 
A countdown show on New Year's eve on the channel included a mock new report about God being the latest known personality to get implicated in a sexual harassment scandal.&nbsp; 
 
“The 5bn-year-old stood accused of forcing himself on a young Middle Eastern migrant and allegedly impregnating her against her will, before being sentenced to two years in prison, with the last 24 months suspended,” said the newsreader. 
 
“Following the news, movie producer Harvey Weinstein requested a retrial in Ireland.” 
 
The segment was presented by Waterford Whispers News- a satirical news website. The clip was 23 seconds long but prompted over 1000 complaint to RTÉ and was condemned by Ireland's Catholic primate archbishop, Eamon Martin.&nbsp;

Martin took to Twitter and demanded that the clip be pulled down.&nbsp; 
 
“This outrageous clip should be removed immediately and denounced by all people of goodwill,” he tweeted. 
 
“To broadcast such a deeply offensive and blasphemous clip about God and Our Blessed Mother Mary during the Christmas season … is insulting to all Catholics and Christians."

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
1. I am shocked that producer/editor of 'NYE Countdown Show' <a href="https://twitter.com/rte?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RTE</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/RTEOne?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RTEOne</a> didn’t realise how deeply offensive was a mocking 'news report' accusing God of rape &amp; reporting his imprisonment. This outrageous clip should be removed immediately &amp; denounced by all people of goodwill.
— Eamon Martin (@ArchbishopEamon) <a href="https://twitter.com/ArchbishopEamon/status/1345055042932510721?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 1, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">×</a></div>

While responding to the complaints, RTÉ apologised and said it would reply according to statutory rules. The channel, however, did not promise to remove the sketch from the RTÉ player.&nbsp; 
 
In a statement, RTÉ apologised and said it would respond to complaints according to statutory rules. It did not promise to remove the sketch from the RTÉ Player. 
 
“RTÉ recognises that matters which can cause offence naturally differ from person to person, within comedy and satire in particular. Having reviewed the feedback and complaints received up to this point, RTÉ wishes to apologise to those who were offended by the segment.” 
 
Meanwhile, a group called Atheist Ireland defended the broadcaster’s right to transmit material deemed offensive and cited a 2018 referendum that removed a prohibition on blasphemy from the constitution. 
 
The last prosecution for blasphemy in Ireland was in 1855 when a priest who accidentally burned a Bible was prosecuted and later acquitted.&nbsp; 
 
In 2015 Stephen Fry had faced similar heat when he described God as “capricious”, “mean-minded”, and an “utter maniac” on TV.&nbsp; 
The police had to investigate the comedian's comments and eventually charges were dropped after deciding insufficient numbers of people had been outraged. 
 
Once deemed as a conservative society which was deeply linked to the Catholic church, Ireland has in recent years turned secular and liberal with the legalisation of gay marriage and abortion in popular votes.&nbsp;

RTÉ, Ireland's state broadcaster has issued an apology after it received severe criticism for airing a comedy sketch that depicted God as a rapist. A countdown show on New Year's eve on the channel included a mock new report about God being the latest known personality to get implicated in a sexual harassment scandal.

RTÉ, Ireland's state broadcaster has issued an apology after it received severe criticism for airing a comedy sketch that depicted God as a rapist. A countdown show on New Year's eve on the channel included a mock new report about God being the latest known personality to get implicated in a sexual harassment scandal. “The 5bn-year-old stood accused of forcing himself on a young Middle Eastern migrant and allegedly impregnating her against her will, before being sentenced to two years in prison, with the last 24 months suspended,” said the newsreader. “Following the news, movie producer Harvey Weinstein requested a retrial in Ireland.” The segment was presented by Waterford Whispers News- a satirical news website. The clip was 23 seconds long but prompted over 1000 complaint to RTÉ and was condemned by Ireland's Catholic primate archbishop, Eamon Martin. Martin took to Twitter and demanded that the clip be pulled down. “This outrageous clip should be removed immediately and denounced by all people of goodwill,” he tweeted. “To broadcast such a deeply offensive and blasphemous clip about God and Our Blessed Mother Mary during the Christmas season … is insulting to all Catholics and Christians." 1. I am shocked that producer/editor of 'NYE Countdown Show' @RTE @RTEOne didn’t realise how deeply offensive was a mocking 'news report' accusing God of rape & reporting his imprisonment. This outrageous clip should be removed immediately & denounced by all people of goodwill. — Eamon Martin (@ArchbishopEamon) January 1, 2021 × While responding to the complaints, RTÉ apologised and said it would reply according to statutory rules. The channel, however, did not promise to remove the sketch from the RTÉ player. In a statement, RTÉ apologised and said it would respond to complaints according to statutory rules. It did not promise to remove the sketch from the RTÉ Player. “RTÉ recognises that matters which can cause offence naturally differ from person to person, within comedy and satire in particular. Having reviewed the feedback and complaints received up to this point, RTÉ wishes to apologise to those who were offended by the segment.” Meanwhile, a group called Atheist Ireland defended the broadcaster’s right to transmit material deemed offensive and cited a 2018 referendum that removed a prohibition on blasphemy from the constitution. The last prosecution for blasphemy in Ireland was in 1855 when a priest who accidentally burned a Bible was prosecuted and later acquitted. In 2015 Stephen Fry had faced similar heat when he described God as “capricious”, “mean-minded”, and an “utter maniac” on TV. The police had to investigate the comedian's comments and eventually charges were dropped after deciding insufficient numbers of people had been outraged. Once deemed as a conservative society which was deeply linked to the Catholic church, Ireland has in recent years turned secular and liberal with the legalisation of gay marriage and abortion in popular votes.

Ireland's state broadcaster issue apology after a comic segment calls God a rapist

On the eve of India's Independence Day, <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/repeal-of-art-370-not-communal-was-need-of-the-hour-vice-president-naidu-242922">President Kovind addressed</a> the nation today asserting that recent changes in Jammu &amp; Kashmir including Ladakh would be of immense benefit to the region.

"The changes will enable the people to access and enjoy the same rights, same privileges and same facilities as their fellow citizens in the rest of the country," President Kovind said.

The Parliament had earlier this month adopted a resolution to repeal Article 370, which provided special powers to Jammu and Kashmir. It also passed a bill to reorganise Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories - Jammu and Kashmir (with legislature) and Ladakh without a legislature.

The reorganization bill was signed by the President after it was passed by the two Houses of Parliament and it was notified by the government on August 9.

"We are at a special juncture," the president said adding that the government was enabling all basic provisions including progressive, egalitarian laws and provisions related to RTE, accessing public information through RTI, reservations in education and employment and other facilities for deprived communities.

It also includes justice for our daughters by abolishing unequal practices such as instant Triple Talaq, the President added.

"This year also marks the 550th birth anniversary of one of the greatest, wisest and most influential Indians of all time Guru Nanak Devji. He was the founder of Sikhism but the reverence &amp; respect he commands go far beyond just our Sikh brothers and sisters."

"We complete 72 years as a free nation at a very special juncture. In a few weeks from now, on October 2, we will celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of the father of our nation Mahatma Gandhi, the guiding light of our successful effort to liberate our nation," President Kovind said while addressing the nation.

"India's tradition has been live and let live," he said, adding," small towns are being connected by air."

"When we design and deliver welfare programmes for our disadvantaged fellow citizens and families when we seek to harness the power of the Sun as renewable energy, we put Gandhian philosophy into action," he said.

The President thanked the people for taking part in the 17th general election and congratulated the voters for turning up at polling stations enthusiastically in large numbers.

President Kovind also recalled the sacrifices of freedom fighters and revolutionaries who made sacrifices for the country's freedom from colonial rule.

On the eve of India's Independence Day, President Kovind addressed the nation today asserting that recent changes in Jammu & Kashmir including Ladakh would be of immense benefit to the region.

On the eve of India's Independence Day, President Kovind addressed the nation today asserting that recent changes in Jammu & Kashmir including Ladakh would be of immense benefit to the region. "The changes will enable the people to access and enjoy the same rights, same privileges and same facilities as their fellow citizens in the rest of the country," President Kovind said. The Parliament had earlier this month adopted a resolution to repeal Article 370, which provided special powers to Jammu and Kashmir. It also passed a bill to reorganise Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories - Jammu and Kashmir (with legislature) and Ladakh without a legislature. The reorganization bill was signed by the President after it was passed by the two Houses of Parliament and it was notified by the government on August 9. "We are at a special juncture," the president said adding that the government was enabling all basic provisions including progressive, egalitarian laws and provisions related to RTE, accessing public information through RTI, reservations in education and employment and other facilities for deprived communities. It also includes justice for our daughters by abolishing unequal practices such as instant Triple Talaq, the President added. "This year also marks the 550th birth anniversary of one of the greatest, wisest and most influential Indians of all time Guru Nanak Devji. He was the founder of Sikhism but the reverence & respect he commands go far beyond just our Sikh brothers and sisters." "We complete 72 years as a free nation at a very special juncture. In a few weeks from now, on October 2, we will celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of the father of our nation Mahatma Gandhi, the guiding light of our successful effort to liberate our nation," President Kovind said while addressing the nation. "India's tradition has been live and let live," he said, adding," small towns are being connected by air." "When we design and deliver welfare programmes for our disadvantaged fellow citizens and families when we seek to harness the power of the Sun as renewable energy, we put Gandhian philosophy into action," he said. The President thanked the people for taking part in the 17th general election and congratulated the voters for turning up at polling stations enthusiastically in large numbers. President Kovind also recalled the sacrifices of freedom fighters and revolutionaries who made sacrifices for the country's freedom from colonial rule.

Changes in J&K will enable people to enjoy similar rights as others in India: President Kovind

The Right to Education Act has been extensively analysed and commented upon in the 9 years since the Act was passed in 2009. Yet, there is one aspect of the Act that has largely escaped scrutiny. This is the aspect of how the government surreptitiously shifted the burden of subsidy, arising from this Act, to the unsuspecting common citizens without any information or notice to them.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The public is generally aware that around 25% of the seats in the schools are to be given free of charges to the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) category of students. The fee for this 25% of the EWS students, it is believed, is getting reimbursed by the government. However, the public is totally unaware of the fact that the government, unable to bear this burden of subsidy, has transferred it, under a maze of rules, to the parents of students who occupy the unreserved 75% seats in the school.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

This step besides being treacherous and immoral is also perhaps illegal as the Hon&rsquo;ble Supreme Court has, in multitude of its judgements, clearly specified that it is the government which has to bear the burden of subsidy and that it cannot shift it to either the parents or the schools. Yet, the burden has been shifted.

&nbsp;

The public needs to know and understand that while the fees schools charge varies anywhere from a few thousand rupees to a few lakhs, the amount reimbursed by the government, is fixed and &lsquo;meagre&rsquo;. The reimbursed amount has very little to do with the actual fees being charged. For instance, a school in Delhi may be charging 1 lakh rupees as the fees from the unreserved category of students. The government, however, will pay this school a fixed amount of only Rs. 19,176 per student for each of the students admitted to the&nbsp; 25% Reserved Category. This gives rise to a deficit of Rs. 80,824 per student ((Rs. 1,00,000 &ndash; 19,176 = Rs. 80,824).&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Who is to foot the bill for the deficit?

&nbsp;

No matter what the government, the courts or the schools might say to the contrary, the burden of this deficit has from the beginning been passed on to the remaining 75% unreserved category students.&nbsp; In the above example, it works out to an additional burden of Rs. 26,941 per student in the unreserved category.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

See Calculations in the table given below:

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/rte%201-20180105083024.png" />
<div class="media-description">
Education subsidy (Others)
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

It may be noted that the amount of reimbursement under RTE in Delhi is on the higher side. In Mumbai it is Rs. 17,329 per student and in Karnataka around Rs. 16,000 per student. Hence, the burden of subsidy shared by parents would be much higher in these cities. The lesser the reimbursement, the higher is the subsidy paid by the parents. You may immediately want to check the amount of reimbursement in your state and school.

&nbsp;

Not, perhaps, satisfied with such duplicity, some of the governments, like one in the state of Karnataka are planning to stop all reimbursements under RTE and are expecting the schools to absorb this additional burden. If only the governments were as conscientious as they claim to be and the schools as philanthropic as the law expect them to be, India would be a much better place and parents would not be agitating against the increasing burden of school fees across India.

&nbsp;

To gauge the level of awareness amongst the parents about this aspect, I checked with parents&rsquo; associations across India. With the notable exception of HSPA from Hyderabad, none of the associations in other cities seem aware of these facts. Some of them who are aware are advocates who quite facetiously seem to believe that the &ldquo;Schools are absorbing the additional burden!&rdquo; If this is the level of awareness and understanding amongst the parents&rsquo; associations, one can imagine the awareness amongst the general public.

&nbsp;

The government is able to carry out this charade because of a clever play of words in the RTE Act which fixes the amount of reimbursement in terms of per capita expenditure of the government on education.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

See extract from the RTE Act:

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/rte2-20180105083130.png" />
<div class="media-description">
Excerpts from RTE Act (Others)
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

You might be surprised to know but there is no standardised method or process of calculation of this per capita expenditure. There is a great amount of ambiguity and variations from state to state on what amounts are to be included as expenditure and who should be fixing this amount of reimbursement. The grants given to the aided schools, which form a substantial part of the state education expenditure, for instance, are not included in the government expenditure at all for these calculations.

&nbsp;

From the above analysis, it seems as if the governments, both past &amp; present, have been pulling a fast one on the people. We need to ask the government as to how it expects the school or the parents to pay a fee that it, by its own admission, finds exorbitant and unaffordable?

&nbsp;

9 years have passed since the passage of the Act and with substantial data available both for and against the act, it is time, at the very least, for the government to initiate a detailed review of the Act to make necessary changes and modifications towards its improvement.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).

Since the passage of RTE Act, the government surreptitiously shifted the burden of subsidy, arising from this Act, to the unsuspecting common citizens without any information or notice to them.

The Right to Education Act has been extensively analysed and commented upon in the 9 years since the Act was passed in 2009. Yet, there is one aspect of the Act that has largely escaped scrutiny. This is the aspect of how the government surreptitiously shifted the burden of subsidy, arising from this Act, to the unsuspecting common citizens without any information or notice to them. The public is generally aware that around 25% of the seats in the schools are to be given free of charges to the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) category of students. The fee for this 25% of the EWS students, it is believed, is getting reimbursed by the government. However, the public is totally unaware of the fact that the government, unable to bear this burden of subsidy, has transferred it, under a maze of rules, to the parents of students who occupy the unreserved 75% seats in the school. This step besides being treacherous and immoral is also perhaps illegal as the Hon’ble Supreme Court has, in multitude of its judgements, clearly specified that it is the government which has to bear the burden of subsidy and that it cannot shift it to either the parents or the schools. Yet, the burden has been shifted. The public needs to know and understand that while the fees schools charge varies anywhere from a few thousand rupees to a few lakhs, the amount reimbursed by the government, is fixed and ‘meagre’. The reimbursed amount has very little to do with the actual fees being charged. For instance, a school in Delhi may be charging 1 lakh rupees as the fees from the unreserved category of students. The government, however, will pay this school a fixed amount of only Rs. 19,176 per student for each of the students admitted to the 25% Reserved Category. This gives rise to a deficit of Rs. 80,824 per student ((Rs. 1,00,000 – 19,176 = Rs. 80,824). Who is to foot the bill for the deficit? No matter what the government, the courts or the schools might say to the contrary, the burden of this deficit has from the beginning been passed on to the remaining 75% unreserved category students. In the above example, it works out to an additional burden of Rs. 26,941 per student in the unreserved category. See Calculations in the table given below: Education subsidy (Others) × It may be noted that the amount of reimbursement under RTE in Delhi is on the higher side. In Mumbai it is Rs. 17,329 per student and in Karnataka around Rs. 16,000 per student. Hence, the burden of subsidy shared by parents would be much higher in these cities. The lesser the reimbursement, the higher is the subsidy paid by the parents. You may immediately want to check the amount of reimbursement in your state and school. Not, perhaps, satisfied with such duplicity, some of the governments, like one in the state of Karnataka are planning to stop all reimbursements under RTE and are expecting the schools to absorb this additional burden. If only the governments were as conscientious as they claim to be and the schools as philanthropic as the law expect them to be, India would be a much better place and parents would not be agitating against the increasing burden of school fees across India. To gauge the level of awareness amongst the parents about this aspect, I checked with parents’ associations across India. With the notable exception of HSPA from Hyderabad, none of the associations in other cities seem aware of these facts. Some of them who are aware are advocates who quite facetiously seem to believe that the “Schools are absorbing the additional burden!” If this is the level of awareness and understanding amongst the parents’ associations, one can imagine the awareness amongst the general public. The government is able to carry out this charade because of a clever play of words in the RTE Act which fixes the amount of reimbursement in terms of per capita expenditure of the government on education. See extract from the RTE Act: Excerpts from RTE Act (Others) × You might be surprised to know but there is no standardised method or process of calculation of this per capita expenditure. There is a great amount of ambiguity and variations from state to state on what amounts are to be included as expenditure and who should be fixing this amount of reimbursement. The grants given to the aided schools, which form a substantial part of the state education expenditure, for instance, are not included in the government expenditure at all for these calculations. From the above analysis, it seems as if the governments, both past & present, have been pulling a fast one on the people. We need to ask the government as to how it expects the school or the parents to pay a fee that it, by its own admission, finds exorbitant and unaffordable? 9 years have passed since the passage of the Act and with substantial data available both for and against the act, it is time, at the very least, for the government to initiate a detailed review of the Act to make necessary changes and modifications towards its improvement. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).

Opinion: Who pays India's education subsidy?

There is an excitement in the air! Yes, it&rsquo;s that time of the year when families come together to celebrate the Christmas spirit and enjoy holidays.

In my host organisation&nbsp;Indus Action, it&rsquo;s campaign season, and the entire organization is gearing for intense hard work for the coming few months so that eligible children do not miss out on their right to education due to lack of information.

In my&nbsp;last blog, I had shared my host organisation&rsquo;s aim to enroll 1 million kids by ensuring effective implementation of the Section 12(1)(c) of the Right to Education Act (RTE). This provision mandates that unaided private schools reserve at least 25% of their entry level seats for children belonging to the disadvantaged and weaker groups. Though often debated, this provision aims to promote inclusion in the society through the young change-makers in the classrooms.

As I become acquainted with the campaign process, I understand that Indus Action works at two levels &ndash; community and the government &ndash; to ensure that the campaigns are successful.&nbsp;

The campaign season, which usually starts 3-4 months prior the admission process, involves intense awareness generation about this provision, especially at the community level,&nbsp; so that eligible families are able to avail its benefit.&nbsp;The organisation&rsquo;s missed call helpline and community calling banks are vital tools to disseminate information to the people about the entire admission process, which includes follow ups with eligible families, informing them about the benefits of this provision, the documents required, application dates, lottery dates and support once selected in the lottery. They also are useful in collecting data on the number of eligible families and successful enrollments.

When the admission cycle starts, help-desks and application centres are set up to ensure that parents and eligible families get adequate support to fill the application online. These application centers are within the community and managed by individuals, who have been trained by the organisation, so that the support available is also easily accessible by the eligible families. These become important as most of the time, families who are not internet savvy or aware of online application system, spend a lot of time and resources in getting an online application filled.

Collaboration with the government is central to the efforts of the organisation, as their belief is to not blame the system, but rather ironing out the creases to make it more efficient. The government support can help to expand the reach and impact of the efforts. The governments (through state-level partnerships) in turn are supported to adopt technology to strengthen their online system for increased transparency in filling applications, lottery system, tracking of students admitted and a database of schools, along with grievance redressal mechanism and user friendly procedures. These, once set in motion, will make the states capable to adapt the technology to implement other policies as well.

Indus Action is aiming to make the entire admission process as cost effective as possible. As CEO Tarun Cherukuri shared during one of our weekly meetings: in the first campaign in 2013, they got 160 children enrolled in @INR 20,000 per child! Whereas last year, more than 30,000 children were enrolled into private schools under this provision for about INR 200 per child, across 5 states through its Partner Entrepreneur Network in Bangalore, Delhi, Lucknow, Pune, and Raipur.

The ambitious target for this campaign season 2017-2018, is to enroll more than 3 lakh children in private schools across India, and 1 million children by 2020.

People face innumerable barriers like poverty, caste, class, gender, disability, religion, race, among others. Because of these social barriers, they lack the access to information about their own rights of which they are them deprived of. Indus Action for me is a bridge leading people to access information about their legislated rights. Children from disadvantaged communities also face barriers because their parents do not have access to information about the Section 12(1)(c), which mandates that the private schools reserve 25% of their seats for such children. This is the provision on which Indus Action is currently focused on with the aim of enrolling 1 million children into schools under this provision.

This&nbsp;article&nbsp;was originally published on 9/12/2017 on&nbsp;American India Foundation

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).

&nbsp;

Children from disadvantaged communities who face barriers because their parents do not have access to information about the Section 12(1)(c), which mandates that the private schools reserve 25% of their seats for such children.

There is an excitement in the air! Yes, it’s that time of the year when families come together to celebrate the Christmas spirit and enjoy holidays. In my host organisation Indus Action, it’s campaign season, and the entire organization is gearing for intense hard work for the coming few months so that eligible children do not miss out on their right to education due to lack of information. In my last blog, I had shared my host organisation’s aim to enroll 1 million kids by ensuring effective implementation of the Section 12(1)(c) of the Right to Education Act (RTE). This provision mandates that unaided private schools reserve at least 25% of their entry level seats for children belonging to the disadvantaged and weaker groups. Though often debated, this provision aims to promote inclusion in the society through the young change-makers in the classrooms. As I become acquainted with the campaign process, I understand that Indus Action works at two levels – community and the government – to ensure that the campaigns are successful. The campaign season, which usually starts 3-4 months prior the admission process, involves intense awareness generation about this provision, especially at the community level, so that eligible families are able to avail its benefit. The organisation’s missed call helpline and community calling banks are vital tools to disseminate information to the people about the entire admission process, which includes follow ups with eligible families, informing them about the benefits of this provision, the documents required, application dates, lottery dates and support once selected in the lottery. They also are useful in collecting data on the number of eligible families and successful enrollments. When the admission cycle starts, help-desks and application centres are set up to ensure that parents and eligible families get adequate support to fill the application online. These application centers are within the community and managed by individuals, who have been trained by the organisation, so that the support available is also easily accessible by the eligible families. These become important as most of the time, families who are not internet savvy or aware of online application system, spend a lot of time and resources in getting an online application filled. Collaboration with the government is central to the efforts of the organisation, as their belief is to not blame the system, but rather ironing out the creases to make it more efficient. The government support can help to expand the reach and impact of the efforts. The governments (through state-level partnerships) in turn are supported to adopt technology to strengthen their online system for increased transparency in filling applications, lottery system, tracking of students admitted and a database of schools, along with grievance redressal mechanism and user friendly procedures. These, once set in motion, will make the states capable to adapt the technology to implement other policies as well. Indus Action is aiming to make the entire admission process as cost effective as possible. As CEO Tarun Cherukuri shared during one of our weekly meetings: in the first campaign in 2013, they got 160 children enrolled in @INR 20,000 per child! Whereas last year, more than 30,000 children were enrolled into private schools under this provision for about INR 200 per child, across 5 states through its Partner Entrepreneur Network in Bangalore, Delhi, Lucknow, Pune, and Raipur. The ambitious target for this campaign season 2017-2018, is to enroll more than 3 lakh children in private schools across India, and 1 million children by 2020. People face innumerable barriers like poverty, caste, class, gender, disability, religion, race, among others. Because of these social barriers, they lack the access to information about their own rights of which they are them deprived of. Indus Action for me is a bridge leading people to access information about their legislated rights. Children from disadvantaged communities also face barriers because their parents do not have access to information about the Section 12(1)(c), which mandates that the private schools reserve 25% of their seats for such children. This is the provision on which Indus Action is currently focused on with the aim of enrolling 1 million children into schools under this provision. This article was originally published on 9/12/2017 on American India Foundation (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).

Opinion:  Will all kids go to school as Delhi starts nursery admission?

&ldquo;I would like to ask them a question&rdquo;, said a boy standing up from a sea of children in pink scarves. My co-fellow and I had just introduced ourselves to the Balsena, as we had to the many new faces and people we had been meeting in the past few days. One of his eyes was stitched up and the scars of a badly done surgery were visible on his face. Yet, the conviction in his voice made me search for the speaker. &ldquo;What is your Dream?&rdquo; he asked with one eye, looking straight at me. I was stumped.

Sitting in the middle of a dusty field in the slums of Kumbharwada, 4 kms on the outskirts of Bhavnagar, with 60 crackling kids and smoke arising from the pile of plastic being burnt right next to us, I was taken aback with the depth of the question. In the days since we arrived, I had heard stories of children being beaten up by teachers, bullied on the streets, pressured to work, pressured to study, fending for themselves, having no one listen to them amongst others. Yet, here at <a href="http://shaishavchildrights.org/" rel="nofollow" target="blank">Shaishav</a>, I met children still curious to know more, willing to learn more, dreaming big and smiling from their hearts despite violence being a routine occurrence in their lives.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/picture1-20171110071541.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
Balsena team &lsquo;Morpeach&rsquo; having their weekly meeting at Kumbharwada. (Others)
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Balsena, literally meaning &lsquo;Children&rsquo;s Collective&rsquo; is the <a href="http://shaishavchildrights.org/maitree/" rel="nofollow" target="blank">flagship program</a>me of Shaishav in Bhavnagar. It is run by the children, for the children, with Shaishav acting as a facilitator. Established in 2003, Balsena is open to all children, regardless of class, gender, caste or religion, and is centred on a child-participation approach &ndash; where children can experience the power of collective strength, learn to develop empathy for other children and support each other. The children decide what they would like to learn about, discuss problems in their community, problem solve together, organise rallies and outings, amongst other things. Aged between 8-16 years, they are organised into teams (Balsena points) based on either their school or community. Each team holds a weekly meeting and participates in activities which focus on developing hard skills and soft skills.

The United Nations identifies children&rsquo;s basic rights to be Right to Survival, Right to Development, Right to Protection and Right to Participation (see CRY 2017). While provisions in the Indian legal system like <a href="http://ncpcr.gov.in/index1.php?lang=1&amp;level=0&amp;linkid=23&amp;lid=593" rel="nofollow" target="blank">POCSO</a> Act and <a href="http://righttoeducation.in/know-your-rte/about" rel="nofollow" target="blank">RTE</a> Act look at protecting the former three, the latter &ndash; Right to Participation &ndash; remains largely ignored. Shaishav aims to bridge this gap through programs like the Balsena. Viewing &lsquo;children leading change&rsquo;, Shaishav hopes to enable in children the confidence to make their own decisions.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/untitled%20design%20(4)-20171110071821.jpg" />
<div class="media-description">
Children tallying votes for deciding on what shall be the activities for the weekly meetings this month. (Others)
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

On my first day, I happened to witness a module on Child Rights being introduced to the Balsena. What was interesting though, was that it was not being &lsquo;taught&rsquo; to the children. Two Youth Fellows were facilitating the session. These were children from the Balsena who had been trained to lead and conduct the module, the weekend before. &ldquo;Let&rsquo;s decide among ourselves what are the five essential things we need in our lives&rdquo; said the fellow, and I listened in on what the groups were discussing.

&ldquo;Money can buy anything&rdquo;, said one boy with utmost seriousness. &ldquo;Therefore it is critical to our survival&rdquo;. &ldquo;But it doesn&rsquo;t buy clean air or water&rdquo; interrupted another. &ldquo;Clothes are most important, otherwise how will you go out and work to earn money?&rdquo; added another.

I watched the children debate their rights in smaller and then larger groups. They went on to play a game of snakes and ladders, integrated with child right pictures in it. Every time my piece landed on a picture, the children chimed in to describe the scene and what right it stood for. &ldquo;Look, the girl is sitting on the side while the males in the family are served and eat first. This is not right. She should get nutritious wholesome food also, and not just leftovers. This goes in her right to survival.&rdquo; And on went the game with each picture being categorised, debated and imbibed.

I wish I had known these rights as a child. I remembered the subtle gender dynamics in my family where girls would be called to help lay out the dishes as the boys continued watching television. While it was never explicitly stated that girls had to help out in household work, these forms of inequality persisted, and I internalised them into my idea of a family structure. Till much later, I never learnt to question them.

To be able to identify gender dynamics and spot subtle gender roles in the family and other environments can be extremely tricky, and it is even more challenging to teach children how to recognise it. But through games like this, it is possible. Here, children were being taught to identify specific scenarios, question what they saw and learned, and place this knowledge within a framework.

The children were being encouraged to think for themselves and stand up for what they believe&nbsp;in. They were learning to form opinions. A rally organised by the children in their communities yesterday was a&nbsp;testament to that. Shouting slogans against tobacco and alcohol, the children marched in the lanes of their neighbourhood, their voices resonating through the alleys and bringing people to their doorsteps.

Shaishav and its work through Balsena, demonstrate that children are capable of asking questions and taking charge of their own lives, if they are equipped with the right set of knowledge, values, direction and mentorship to do so.

Initially stumped by the boy&rsquo;s question, I think I have my answer now. My dream is to be able to watch each child find their voice, explore their curiosity and work towards making this world a more peaceful, green, harmonious and better place to live.

&nbsp;

This&nbsp;<a href="http://aif.org/children-leading-change-notes-from-the-field/" rel="nofollow" target="blank">article</a>&nbsp;was originally&nbsp;published on 20/ 10/ 2017 on <a href="http://aif.org/" rel="nofollow" target="blank">American India Foundation</a>

Photo Credit:&nbsp;Adrian Fisk for Shaishav

Children are capable of asking questions and taking charge of their own lives if they are equipped with the right set of knowledge, values, direction and mentorship to do so.

“I would like to ask them a question”, said a boy standing up from a sea of children in pink scarves. My co-fellow and I had just introduced ourselves to the Balsena, as we had to the many new faces and people we had been meeting in the past few days. One of his eyes was stitched up and the scars of a badly done surgery were visible on his face. Yet, the conviction in his voice made me search for the speaker. “What is your Dream?” he asked with one eye, looking straight at me. I was stumped. Sitting in the middle of a dusty field in the slums of Kumbharwada, 4 kms on the outskirts of Bhavnagar, with 60 crackling kids and smoke arising from the pile of plastic being burnt right next to us, I was taken aback with the depth of the question. In the days since we arrived, I had heard stories of children being beaten up by teachers, bullied on the streets, pressured to work, pressured to study, fending for themselves, having no one listen to them amongst others. Yet, here at Shaishav, I met children still curious to know more, willing to learn more, dreaming big and smiling from their hearts despite violence being a routine occurrence in their lives. Balsena team ‘Morpeach’ having their weekly meeting at Kumbharwada. (Others) × Balsena, literally meaning ‘Children’s Collective’ is the flagship programme of Shaishav in Bhavnagar. It is run by the children, for the children, with Shaishav acting as a facilitator. Established in 2003, Balsena is open to all children, regardless of class, gender, caste or religion, and is centred on a child-participation approach – where children can experience the power of collective strength, learn to develop empathy for other children and support each other. The children decide what they would like to learn about, discuss problems in their community, problem solve together, organise rallies and outings, amongst other things. Aged between 8-16 years, they are organised into teams (Balsena points) based on either their school or community. Each team holds a weekly meeting and participates in activities which focus on developing hard skills and soft skills. The United Nations identifies children’s basic rights to be Right to Survival, Right to Development, Right to Protection and Right to Participation (see CRY 2017). While provisions in the Indian legal system like POCSO Act and RTE Act look at protecting the former three, the latter – Right to Participation – remains largely ignored. Shaishav aims to bridge this gap through programs like the Balsena. Viewing ‘children leading change’, Shaishav hopes to enable in children the confidence to make their own decisions. Children tallying votes for deciding on what shall be the activities for the weekly meetings this month. (Others) × On my first day, I happened to witness a module on Child Rights being introduced to the Balsena. What was interesting though, was that it was not being ‘taught’ to the children. Two Youth Fellows were facilitating the session. These were children from the Balsena who had been trained to lead and conduct the module, the weekend before. “Let’s decide among ourselves what are the five essential things we need in our lives” said the fellow, and I listened in on what the groups were discussing. “Money can buy anything”, said one boy with utmost seriousness. “Therefore it is critical to our survival”. “But it doesn’t buy clean air or water” interrupted another. “Clothes are most important, otherwise how will you go out and work to earn money?” added another. I watched the children debate their rights in smaller and then larger groups. They went on to play a game of snakes and ladders, integrated with child right pictures in it. Every time my piece landed on a picture, the children chimed in to describe the scene and what right it stood for. “Look, the girl is sitting on the side while the males in the family are served and eat first. This is not right. She should get nutritious wholesome food also, and not just leftovers. This goes in her right to survival.” And on went the game with each picture being categorised, debated and imbibed. I wish I had known these rights as a child. I remembered the subtle gender dynamics in my family where girls would be called to help lay out the dishes as the boys continued watching television. While it was never explicitly stated that girls had to help out in household work, these forms of inequality persisted, and I internalised them into my idea of a family structure. Till much later, I never learnt to question them. To be able to identify gender dynamics and spot subtle gender roles in the family and other environments can be extremely tricky, and it is even more challenging to teach children how to recognise it. But through games like this, it is possible. Here, children were being taught to identify specific scenarios, question what they saw and learned, and place this knowledge within a framework. The children were being encouraged to think for themselves and stand up for what they believe in. They were learning to form opinions. A rally organised by the children in their communities yesterday was a testament to that. Shouting slogans against tobacco and alcohol, the children marched in the lanes of their neighbourhood, their voices resonating through the alleys and bringing people to their doorsteps. Shaishav and its work through Balsena, demonstrate that children are capable of asking questions and taking charge of their own lives, if they are equipped with the right set of knowledge, values, direction and mentorship to do so. Initially stumped by the boy’s question, I think I have my answer now. My dream is to be able to watch each child find their voice, explore their curiosity and work towards making this world a more peaceful, green, harmonious and better place to live. This article was originally published on 20/ 10/ 2017 on American India Foundation Photo Credit: Adrian Fisk for Shaishav

Why it is crucial to ensure rights of a child

Rte, News on Rte, stories on Rte, articles on Rte, Rte stories at Wion, Rte news, Rte latest news