Right to Education is merely a political slogan; can it be successfully implemented in India?

We have joined the club of 135 other countries that similar Right to Education Act. But good intentions alone do not yield results. And if it is a political move, however well-intentioned, it will always be suspect. Idealistic people will despair about the practicality and cynics will dismiss it. Its a lofty goal. Education to all until the age of 14 years. Creation of an egalitarian society through education. And to a large extent, many believe that education can go a long way to address other social issues plaguing this country. Lets examine the issue a little closely. Article 45 of the Constitution states The State shall endeavour to provide, within a period of ten years from the commencement of this Constitution, for free and compulsory education for all children until they complete the age of fourteen years. 59 years later our literacy rate hovers around 74% as per 2011 census against the world average of 84%. We still have largest number of illiterates in the world. It took us 59 years to make the above provision into a law Right to Education Act, 2009. But for the act to be successful it should not remain a law on paper with no scope or will to implement. It took us 4 years, 20052009, before the act could be passed. In that period many provisions in the act which could have been revolutionary and path breaking were diluted due to pressure from various quarters like private schools, parents from well-to-do sections etc. Still the government managed to pass the law. A look at the logistics required to implement the act will show that while the heart was in the right place, the practicalities seems to have been completely overlooked. Education is on the concurrent list meaning both centre and states can legislate. However, most states lack the means to push through universal education. It is clear that the centre will have to subsidize the states heavily for it to get a modicum of success. It has been estimated that we will need approximately 250000 crores over the next 5 years to implement this across the country! Moreover, the skewed nature of our literacy rates, social parameters like birth rate, gender ratio, GDP etc. makes the implementation of RTE also uneven. Important parameters like studentteacher ratio, infrastructure, access to schools in rural areas - all seem to have been ignored. Many have pointed out that RTE was too hastily drafted and passed. The criticisms have been quite strong with some even stating that its a fraud on our children. It gives neither free education nor compulsory education. All stakeholders were not kept in the loop and in the process there are more opponents than proponents. It has also been mired in many controversies and legal tangles. Many schools tried to pass on the burden of the additional cost to parents who vehemently opposed it. RTE is also seen to be aggravating the already dismal private-government school divide. It does not address the abysmal quality of education in government schools which is compounded by mismanagement, absenteeism, acute shortage of infrastructure and staff to run these schools. As of now, it has been a very tardy progress. Awareness is low, resistance stiff and clarity dim. Some heart warming news like the rag pickers in Pune who read, understood and pushed through their childrens admission in elite schools using RTE. Or the lawyer in Andhra Pradesh who is trying to create awareness. Pockets of zealous implementers, committed individuals. Not a cohesive action. None spearheaded by the centre to speak of.

So, to conclude, good intentions and paper laws are just that. 62 years ago our leaders had enshrined free & compulsory education to the countries young citizens. We dont need more laws or acts. We need action and better implementation. Many countries have shown that it is possible to achieve high literacy through government plans. We need the will, means can and will be found.