A petition has been filed in the Bombay High Court seeking a ‘relook’ at the Right to Education Bill that goes against the constitutional right to free and compulsory pre-primary education and early childhood care.

Activists Simantini Dhuru, Arvind Vaidya and Shakil Ahmed, who filed the petition, pointed out that the Bill negates Article 45 of the Constitution that required the state to make provisions within 10 years of its adoption for free and compulsory education (including nutrition, healthcare and balanced development) for all children until they complete 14 years of age.

The Bill, as it stands today, envisages free and compulsory education for children aged 6-14. The petition cites the omission of free and compulsory pre-primary education and early childhood care in state-run schools across Maharashtra, which includes teacher training in the balwadis (pre-primary sections) and their curriculum.

“What needs to be highlighted is that the appointment of teachers to these balwadis do not conform to the guidelines of the NCERT and the National Centre for Professional Training (NCPT). Very often, these teachers are not even class X pass. There also needs to be a structured curriculum on par with the education imparted in mainstream schools,” Dhuru said.

“The age of 0-6 years is important in growth of a child in terms of nutrition and brain development. However, this advantage is denied to a large section of the children. While there are many private organisations that run pre-primary institutions, there are not enough run by the state,” she said.

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