Aim of RTE Act to provide quality education

Updated on: Friday, May 11, 2012

Educationist Mahabaleshwara Rao speaking at the district-level workshop on Karnataka Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Rules, 2012, organised by the Department of Public Instruction, said that the aim of the Right to Education (RTE) Act was to provide quality education to children.

Dr. Rao said the RTE Act provided for free and compulsory education for all children between age six and 14. The Act stated that 25 per cent of admissions in all private schools would be provided to children from underprivileged homes in neighbouring areas. The Act would apply for students of class one this year, he said.

Schools under the Union Government, State Government, aided, unaided, international, madrasas, seminary, and veda patashala come under the purview of the Act. But the Supreme Court had exempted private unaided minority schools from the Act. But even here, such private unaided minority schools should be in possession of a certificate of them being a minority institution from the Directorate of Minorities.

The Government would be forced to keep a record of all children till the age of 14. It would be incumbent upon authorities to see that the children employed in different industries were removed from there and provided education, Dr. Rao said.

President of the zilla panchayat K. Shankar Poojary said the Supreme Court had on April 12, 2012, upheld the validity of the RTE Act. The court had, in its judgment, made it clear that the Act would be implemented throughout the country.

There was a decline in the birth rate in Udupi. Only 11,000 children were expected to join first standard in the district this year. There were fears expressed in some quarters that some government schools might close down because of this. The RTE Act would bring a qualitative change in the field of education, Mr. Poojary said.

Chief Executive Officer of the zilla panchayat Prabhakar Sharma said the heads of aided and unaided schools should cooperate with the Department of Public Instruction in the implementation of the RTE Act.

A lot of responsibility for implementing the RTE Act properly rested on Block Education Officers. Nagendra Madhyastha, DDPI, welcomed the gathering.

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