Before addressing the problem of education it is important to understand the role of education and why much emphasis should be laid on it and Why it is necessary? At Mehaan we believe that children are the wealth of a nation, a wealth that guarantees a prosperous future. According to this, with 400 million children, India should be one of the richest countries on earth! It’s a pity that 11.8% of India’s national wealth is toiling to earn a livelihood, engaged in some sort of child labour or worse still out begging on streets. Agriculture and allied work account for nearly 70 % of child labourers but is not prohibited in the Child Labour Act 2006.
Though child labour is banned in hazardous industries 17 million children are engaged in such industries including illegal mining. These are just the estimated figures actual figures might be higher. Looking at the various government policies and schemes it is clear that children hold a low priority where national issues are concerned. Lack of education is higher among girls, because in lower/labour classes they undertake household chores after work in the field and in the more conservative classes they are not seen as bread earners,hence their being educated is of no importance. However through RTE (Right To Education Act, 2009) India has taken a major step towards ensuring basic education for every child.
Under this Act it is a legally enforceable duty of the Centre and State governments to provide free and compulsory education to all children in the age group of 3 to 15. Under RTE schools are to constitute SMCs (School Management Committees) with inclusion of 50% women and parents of children from disadvantaged groups. The Act also contains specific provisions for child labourers, migrant children, children with special needs and other such disadvantaged groups facing a social, gender or any other such bias.
This Education Law exists however; its implementation has been lagging on the ground. According to the government’s own DISE data, 2 children in 3 study in schools that fail the norms of pupil teacher ratio and 5.2 million additional teachers are needed to fulfill it. 2 schools in 5 lack a functional common toilet. The reality on the ground remains regrettably poor. Over 6 lakhs teacher posts remain vacant and 60% of schools fail to comply with the Act’s provisions. Only 5% of schools in the country are compliant with all the norms for infrastructure that the Act mandates. 40% of schools do not meet the norm on availability of classrooms.
At a time when discrimination and corporal punishments are banned, 99% of children experience punishment in schools. While millions of children remain out of school, only 41.6% of the annual target for enrollment of out of school children had been met until now . Looking at the above data, it is not surprising that the learning outcomes in both government and elite private schools remain below the international average. The education system itself is multiracked with great differences in quality.Thus it becomes very important for community,volunteers and social welfare organizations along with private schools to form an alliance to narrow down and bridge the gaps further acting as a support system to the RTE act.
We, at Mehaan Charitable Foundation, would ensure that child education should be given prime importance as we feel Unlike adults children do not have the knowledge or the means to voice their issues. Even educated children are unaware of their rights. Child education is also necessary to curb child labour, exploitation and trafficking.There are many legislation’s along with prohibitions and bans to protect children. However,at Mehaan Charitable Foundation,we believe that mere protection against evils like child labour, child trafficking and exploitation, etc. is not enough. By far the greatest reason for child labour is poverty, parents can’t afford their children’s education moreover they need an extra hand to help them earn a living. To completely abolish and uproot these problems education is a must. Moreover, education is the first step towards making a child independent.
Mehaan Charitable Foundation therefore plans to establish a school to provide free and quality education to under privileged children of the age group of 3 to 15 years. The curriculum of which will be government approved and in sync with other public schools. A school that will provide not only education but also a nurturing environment that would support their every need from learning to emotional support and counselling to overall personality development. The children will be provided free books, stationery and meals. Mehaan Charitable Foundation will work towards the effective Implementation of the Right to Education Act and existing government programmes through grass root community groups and by networking with other underprivileged schools in its focus areas. We, at Mehaan Charitable Foundation, call upon for civil society action for advocating quality education through formal systems in key focus areas.
RECENT WORK
29th April 2015- School Admission For Underprivileged Children
Mehaan Charitable Foundation engaged in supporting child education for the upliftment and empowerment of the underprivileged kids.
Recently we were successfully able to manage school admissions of 15 underprivileged kids in the formal school run by the Shiksha near Khatushyam Mandir slum.
The most challenging part of this initiative was to encourage parents to send their kids to formal school, explaining them the formalities and helping them with documentation in order to make formal school admissions procedure less cumbersome.
We are also maintaining constant communication with school teacher and principal in order to make sure kids are regular with school and there are no dropouts.
Getting formal school admissions was our first step and in order to sustain this initiative we need to provide constant support and counseling to keep these kids and their parents motivated.
We are also actively looking for volunteers who can provide off school support to these kids through interactive evening classes.
Dedicate your time for this noble cause, do educate the underprivileged kids.
