Despite promises made by department heads, HRD Minister, and the government, effective implementation of the Right to Education Act is drawing flak from all quarters, MLC M.V.S. Sarma has said.
At a roundtable organised here by the Andhra Pradesh State Right to Education Forum on Sunday, Mr. Sarma pointed out that there was a threat of privatisation of education. He said that education should be considered as a precious investment rather than a money-spinning venture.
The meeting was headed by forum’s State convenor Narava Prakasa Rao and attended by member of State Commission for Protection of Child Rights S. Balaraju, and Naresh Kumar of Generation Yuva, among a number of NGO representatives and volunteers.
“There is a need to allocate an additional Rs.80 crore by the Central Government for the purpose. Instead of finding means to address the issues that continue to plague the system, the government has been overlooking the loopholes,” Mr. Sarma said.
Emphasising the need to provide quality education, Mr. Prakasa Rao said education should be accessible to all.
“The Act clearly indicates that there should be a primary school within one-km in every neighbourhood. With limited enrolment and non-availability of teachers, a number of primary schools have been closed down,” he pointed out.
Those who took part in the meeting said that unless the State Government tried to bridge the gap in the existing system, seeking stakeholders’ opinion on the implementation of ‘No Detention Policy’ and introduction of English medium in government schools would not bring better results.
