PRIVILEGE, NOT A RIGHT

In a population of 130 Cr. With the largest youth population across the globe, India still falls
under the category of a developing nation far from prosperity with millions going to bed hungry
and thousands not having a proper means of sustainability. We have the largest unemployed
youth across the globe and that is something each of us has to ponder upon. With the
exponential increase in population, why is it that the nation lacks in productivity? Where is the
flaw in the entire system?

About 60 years ago India established a policy of providing free and compulsory education to
all children and began transforming the elite education system inherited from its colonial past
into a mass education program.1 This proved tedious due to the rapid population growth which
surpassed the pace at which the kids were to be enrolled into schools. Since then, multiple
policies were framed and strategies were implemented to achieve equity and provision of better
quality education. The dream of imparting universal elementary education to all is still in the
making.

Education must not simply teach work, it must teach life. Education to every child is a
necessity. No amount of money can make up for a wrecked childhood. Education is the means
of breaking the vicious cycle of non- productivity in our youth. Education does not simply
mean literacy; it is the art of sustenance. To every child, education must mark the road to a
better standard of living where they actively contribute to the economy. Education must be
imparted in such a way that the children at the end of it they are an active member of the society
capable of fending for themselves.

The Right to Education Act seems like the answers to all of our questions. It is a gift that seems
god given. It provides for free and compulsory education for all children up to the age of 14.2
This seemingly flawless provision looks to be a one stop solution to all the problems in regards
to education, but reality is far from it. The implementation of this act is still undergoing
changes. The feasibility and the willingness of parents to send their children prove to be a
barrier. Among the day-to-day survival of the poor, education always takes a backseat. To limit
spending, girls are often not sent to school and education as a whole as lost its meaning among
the poor and is treated as a mere aversion. Several schemes at both central and state levels have

1
Govinda R ‘Education for all: assessing progress towards Dakar Goals’ [2008] Prospects 431.
2
Right to Education Act, 2005.
been introduced to tackle this problem. The most popular ones have been the mid-day meal
schemes, Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya, Sarva Siksha Abhiyan and several others.

With all this said and done, there are still thousands of children out there, who have been denied
their basic right to education and have been silencing of their voice of dissent. Their tiny
shoulders burdened with gargantuan societal responsibilities crushing their hopes of a normal
childhood and stripping them of their dreams. We say that education is a right not a privilege,
but is it?