The Hindu : Right to education a distant dream?

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Aug 08, 2002

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Right to education a distant dream?

By J. Venkatesan

NEW DELHI AUG. 7. A piquant situation has arisen with the Centre yet to forward to the President for his assent the Constitution (93rd Amendment) Bill, 2001 making the "right to education" a fundamental right. The Bill was passed by Parliament during the budget session.

As a result, the Bill which seeks to make the right to free and compulsory education from six to 14 years of age a fundamental right is still a distant dream.

The Bill imposes an obligation on parents to provide opportunities for education to their children of this age group and enforce the right against the Government if it fails to provide education.

Authoritative sources told The Hindu that the Bill had not been sent to the President as the Government had developed "cold feet" in view of the huge expenditure involved in making education a fundamental and enforceable right.

With the States also facing a resource crunch, the Centre is not in a position to provide funds to the States and it has decided to delay the implementation of the legislation. The sources say that very rarely a Bill was put in "cold storage'' after it is passed in Parliament and not forwarded to the President for his assent.

The Government's decision has sent shock waves among academicians and educationists.

By virtue of the amendment passed by Parliament, a new Article 21-A has been inserted in the Constitution and consequently Article 45, which provides for compulsory and free education of children up to 14 years of age as a Directive Principle of State Policy, stands superseded.

The States and the Union territories are required to enact laws for the enforcement of this right within one year after the legislation comes into force.

But with the Centre's unexplained decision, this right will not become a reality in the current academic year 2002-2003, feel educationists. They say that the 1992 Education Policy envisaged free and compulsory elementary education of satisfactory quality to all children up to the age of 14 before India entered the 21st century.

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