Sulochana Kodavoor, member of the Udupi-based Shikshana Sampanmoola Kendragala Okkoota, has that the Right to Education Act is essential because, despite a favourable Constitution, universal education has still not been achieved in the country.
Ms. Kodavoor was speaking as a resource person at a programme on the Right to Education Act organised by the zilla panchayat, the Adult Education Officer and Padi-Valored, a non-governmental organisation here on Thursday.
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Representatives of teachers, elected members, secretaries of gram panchayats, and officials of the zilla panchayat and the taluk panchayat attended it.
Ms. Kodavoor said that the Act was meant for poor people who could not afford to send their children to school. The local authorities must ensure that no child is discriminated against on the basis of caste, creed or gender, she said.
Reservation
“The provision of 25 per cent reservation in non-government schools for children from the underprivileged sections will enable such children to secure admission in schools near their houses but previously out of their reach,” she said.
Once the Act is enforced, all such schools would have to send the particulars of expenses of schooling poor children to the Deputy Director of Public Instruction by December 30. Those costs would then be reimbursed, she said.
However, a few participants expressed reservations about some of the provisions in the Act. Sushma Janardhan, zilla panchayat member, said “The annual fees of some private schools go up to Rs. 80,000. Is the Government ready to shell out so much money?”
M. Ravindra, a schoolteacher, supported the intention and purpose of the Act. But he felt that it was not possible for teachers to implement the Act in letter and spirit.
“Every other day, teachers are either sent for training or election duty. How can we give individual attention to students, which is mandatory under the Act,” he asked while speaking to The Hindu after the programme concluded.