RIGHT TO EDUCATION UNDER INDIAN

CONSTITUTION AND ITS IMPLEMENTATION

THROUGH THE NEW EDUCATION POLICY
-Suryya Sekhar Das1
_____________________________________________________________________

During Prime Minister-ship of Dr. Manmohan Singh the Right to Education bill was
passed in Parliament in 4th August 2009. It was included in Article 21A of 86th
amendment. It provides free and compulsory Education of 6-14 years children. This is
a basic right to all children all over world and it came to effect on 1st April 2010
which is a shared obligation of state and Central Govt. It is an obligatory Primary
education in Local school. The Govt. provides free education in child's Primary
education. It is mandatory for the state government to apply for the scheme for being
this Act as basic right to children. According to this Policy all Private Schools keep a
reserve of 25% seats for the weaker section of Society. A 14 member National
Advisory Council monitor the implementation of this act. It also speaks for the
disabled children until they attain 18 years age. In developing countries local
government implemented ordinance in 2009. For watershed event which entails free
and quality primary education with the assistance of families & communities.
Moreover few nation incorporated institutional provision for student, child friendly
education.

Key points : Child-friendly, Obligatory, Implementation, education

1
Student of LLM,Semester II,Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology(Law
Dept.),Bhubaneswar,2285025@kls.ac.in
 1. INTRODUCTION
Its radical egalitarianism of primary education has been a goal of the Indian
government since freedom, i.e., since 1947, but has yet to be realized, thus in order to
attain it, the RTE policy was created, and it became a basic right and an Act.
The Right to Education Reform act, 2009 mandates that state and national
governments of India offer free and obligatory education to children aged six to
fourteen years old. This legislation was passed on August 4, 2009, during Manmohan
Singh's time as Prime Minister of India. This program was established to promote
those who belong to underprivileged sections in society, such as the impoverished, to
send their children to school for free.
According to this legislation, all educational institutions shall reserve 25% of total
seats for children from disadvantaged groups and the poorer sections of society, as
well as provide free and obligatory education till graduation. The Department of
Human Resources and Development established a structured National Advisory
Council to supervise the execution of this Act. The Right to Education for Persons
with Disabilities applies until the age of eighteen and is governed by a distinct piece
of law known as the Persons with Disabilities Act. Many people benefited from this
legislation, and many more continue to benefit and will prosper in the future. As this
education scheme provides for 25% reservation and inorder for the guardian to enroll
their wards under this, the income limit has to be below 3,60,000 rupees per annum.
There is room for wrongdoing, and many of them are committed by fabricating fake
income statements in order to profit from the 25% quota in institutions. 2 Even after
being eligible for paying their wards fee most people tend to obtain minimal certs by
paying a bribe and get enrolled under this education policy, while some try to secure
seats under 25% quota in prominent universities through middlemen. This means that
those who truly need the seat would miss out. Under this strategy, payments for
children attending private universities will be repaid by the administration, allowing
private schools to report high spending figures per student.3
The Right to Education Act includes a clause in this stance such as barring mental
bullying of any young person or physical assault by working or quel staff, they ensure
that equal & correct opportunities are given to childrens in order to develop healthy

2
Sections 33 and 34 of the Act

3
Article 39 (e) and (f) of the Constitution of India
manners and in conditions of freedom and dignity, and protecting childhood and
youth from exploitation and moral and material abandonment. Illegal collection of a
charge that should not have been collected, forbids the operation of a school without
government recognition, screening processes for pupils, and a capitation fee.
There is also a provision for specific training for school dropouts in order to bring
them up to speed with pupils their age. All educators respect the Act's objective and
feel that it will lead to the overspecialization of primary education in our nation.

1. THE CAUSE & BASE OF ENFORCING RIGHT TO

EDUCATIONAL POLICY

In 1870, the education act legislation was implemented in England. So, in India,
lobbying for obligatory basic education increased. Petition for laws to make primary
education mandatory was raised by Dada-bhai Naoroji and Jyotiba Phule, albeit only
for 4 years from the Bombay Presidency. The proposal for Universal applicability of
Primary Education was initially made before the Indian Education Commission by
Indians such as Dada bhai Naroji, who wanted to establish public bodies chosen by
Indians accountable for elementary education. Jyothi Rao Phule also expressed his
belief that basic education should be made compulsory till the ages of 12. In 1905, 4
the Kolkata Congress decided that decent education is a birth right of the people of
India, and this decision gave a U-turn to make India and Indians realise the
importance of education & literacy in their lives and it further formed the base for
education system in the country. Ibrahim Rahimtoola and Chamanlal Setalwad made
the first attempt to impose mandatory schooling in British India in Bombay, therefore
the Government of Bombay set up a committee in 1906 to investigate the viability of
instituting mandatory schooling in Bombay.5 Gokhale launched the first public call
for obligatory elementary education. Since 1918, all lawmakers in India have passed
measures to implement compulsory elementary education. After the Indian act of
1919, authority of basic education was passed to Indian ministers, and after 1937,
Indian ministers gained independence. Gandhi devised a plan for providing basic

4
The Right to Education Legislation,https://dsel.education.gov.in/rte (last visited 28, jan.2023)
5
Id.at 4
knowledge, which was debated and approved in Wardha in 19376. This plan,
subsequently known as the Wardha scheme, provides seven years of free and
obligatory education.
The India's National Education Policy were drafted in 1968, and it gave a outline
towards the government's commitment to basic education.The national education
policy of 1986 &1990 proposed that the Right to Education act be included as a cause
of basic right in the charter of constitution of India.In 1974, the Indian government
established a national policy for children, with the major objective of providing free
and mandatory education to children until they reached the age of 14. This policy
further got reformulated in 1992 during the Prime Ministership of P.V.Narasimha
Rao, India began to establish law to make education a basic right after ratifying with
the 1992 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child7 .

2. ENFORCEMENT OF NEP IN INDIA

In 1968 the New Education Policy has drafted Showing Government's commitment to
basic education. The Right to education was a basic right in the policies of 1986 and
1990. The National strategy was announced in 1974 pertaining to free and
compulsory education for children up to 14 years of age. It was further formulated
under the chairmanship of P.V. Narasimha Rao, the former Prime Minister of India in
1992, and later on, the Right to children as a basic right was ratified in 1992 in the UN
convention. The government of India has successfully implemented New Education
Policy at the local, State, and National levels. The changes in development have
promoted personal skills and social development thereby creating a strong democracy.
In the early days' education was restricted to the people of high society those who
obtained education from Gurukuls and other residential Institutions. In 1950, the
fundamental rights of education were established within the Provision of the
constitution Stating free and compulsory education for children of 6 to 14. years of
age. In order to modernize the curriculum of the Central Board of Secondary
Education (CBSE) and National Council of Educational Research and Training

6
Wardha Scheme of Basic Education: history and causes, GeeksforGeeks,1937
7
Convention on the Rights of the Child Adopted and opened for signature, ratification and accession by General Assembly
resolution 44/25 of 20, in accordance with article 49 ,(ohchr.org)
(NCERT) introduced Further to improve the education system a few policies and
initiatives were taken into consideration.

 1) The Policy of Right to generation adopted in 2009 directed that every child
must have free and compulsory education in his/her local school and 25% of seats
for a child must the Poor students were to be reserved in Private schools.

 2) In 2001 the Sarva Sinha Abhiyan Program was launched to introduce inclusive
education for disadvantaged Section

 3) In order to improve the quality of Secondary education in India Rashtriya

Madhyamik Sikhaya Abhiyan (RMCA) was launched in 2009 along with
emphasizing vocational and Skill development.

 4)The National Curriculum Framework (NCF) was launched in 2009 to improve

inclusion. education System

 5) In order to reform and revitalize the Education System in India the National
Education Policy (NEP) was introduced in 2020 directing more importance on
equitable education and focusing on Quality education irrespective of caste,
creed, social background, and location. The System of implementation has owned
Several achievements and improvements Well the National Education Policy
(NEP) was updated in 1986 and it has shown. some significant changes in
education.
 Earlier it was formulated in 1986 and further modified in 1992. It provided
inclusive, equitable, holistic education and drive out outdated learning. It has
Problem-solving skills. The NEP has given Priority to skills-based training in the
education system, the main objective of the NEP adopted in 2003 was to expand
education in rural and remote areas. Move over, in order to improve the quality of
Education it emphasized teacher training and professional development. It also
Prioritized the inclusion of disadvantaged groups in 2023. The other area of
integration was to integrate vocational and Skill based training into the education
system to face the challenges of the 21st century. The major drawback of the
Policy is NEP 2003, could not address the ways funding was to o be done. It is
 also scared of criticism of standardized testing. The policy emphasized
introducing a common entrance test for higher education. The Policy also or on
Providing equal access to education for disadvantaged Students residing in rural
areas including that low-income groups of families and minority groups as well
the new education policy has faced criticism from local schools for emphasizing
standardized testing. The policy aimed at improving the total education system in
calculating a high-quality education for all students Neal's education Policies are
as follows:
 1)Interpretation of existing systems and routines. The NEP may disrupt and
confuse students, teachers, and administration

 2)Cost:- the new education policy requires funds for the Purchase of tracking
materials and the coming teachers' training which could be extensive.

 3) Resistance to change: Teachers, Parents, and Students may resist implementing

New Education Policy

 4)The New Education policy might have unintended consequences for its adverse
effect on Student achievement.

 5) Inequalities: It is important to consider the potential impacts of policy on

equality and made access to education.8

3. THE BENEFITS OF THE RTE POLICY

 It forbids the institution from obtaining any either of their scholars a capitation
fee.
 Schools are required to grant RTE seats solely to candidates who are unable to
pay their own bills.

8
Falak Fathima Educational BlogImplementation of New Education Policy,
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/readersblog/educational-blog/implementation-of-new-education-policy-in-india-an-insight-
48262/(last visited 29,jan.2023,6;30PM)
 This event guarantees that every school maintains a pupil-teacher ratio and that
suitably educated instructors are engaged by the school for the appropriate
instruction of the pupils.
 There will be no unequal treatment or intimidation.
 Because 75% of SMC [school management committee] participants are parents of
students, and local governments and 50% are women, they control the
school successfully

 The NEP makes education more inclusive and accessible to all students that
require expansion of Policy in respect of childhood care and education for those
students who did not have access to traditional schools. The policy recommends a
holistic, student-centered approach to teaching and Learning. The key focus of
NEP is to develop critical thinking and Problem-solving skills.
 The policy also recommends the improvement of technology to improve teacher
training and to provide teachers best access to the latest research and best
practices in education.
 It also aims to modernize and reform the education system.
 Another key goal of NEP is to increase the availability of education in regional
languages and provide financial support for disadvantaged students and
implement reducing socioeconomic gaps in education.9

4. ISSUES REGARDING RTE POLICY

Children from school systems may have linguistic barriers at private English
moderate institutions.

 Because the institution waives fees for a specified group of persons under a
25percentage threshold.
 To sustain steady revenues, the school will tend to raise the tuition of other
pupils.
 Those who attended private schools under the 25% allocation may find it
challenging to transition to public schools after 14 years due to their parent's
economic situation.

9
Id
 Lower-income children may suffer everyday harassment from affluent
youngsters, undermining their self-esteem.
 This somehow excludes youngsters aged 14 and under from consideration.
 An upsurge in exploitation by local authorities from unrecognized schools is
possible.

6.CASE STUDY
1 .Avinash Mehrotra v. Union of India and Others10
FACT : This problem arose in Madras. The academy, a single thatched-roof structure
with no windows or exits, was a private institution with just one entrance.' The blaze
in a kitchen as chefs were preparing a lunchtime meal, killing 93 youngsters and
wounded many more. The current writ petition was brought under Public Interest
Litigation [PIL] in order to safeguard schoolchildren from such future tragedies and to
improve the country's educational conditions. In addition to solidify its judegment he
Supreme Court sent summons to the Union of India, the states, and the union
territories.

JUDGEMENT: In its final decision, the Supreme Court of India stated that the right
to education also includes the right to a safe atmosphere in institutions and imposed a
duty on schools in all states to adhere with specific fire safety safeguards.

2.Mohini Jain Vs State of Karnataka11

10
Avinash Mehrotra v. Union of India & Ors, 6 SCC 398 (2009)

11
Mohini Jain v. State of Karnataka 30 July 19921992 AIR 1858; 1992 SCC (3) 666; 1992 SCR (3) 658
FACT: In this case Miss Mohini Jain, from Uttar Pradesh, applied to study medicine
at Sri Siddhartha Medical Institution, a private medical college in Karnataka. The
college asked a sixty thousand deposit as tuition costs for the first year, as well as a
credit facility to cover the expenses for the following years. Mohini Jain and her
family were unable to pay the needed money, hence she was denied admission to the
private medical college. She perceived prejudice and that the cost was excessive.
Then she filed a petition to the Supreme Court of India against the Karnataka
government, contesting the notification allowing private medical colleges to charge a
greater tuition cost to candidates who were not allocated to government seats than to
those who were enrolled in government seats. Respondents included the Karnataka
Medical Colleges Association and Sri Siddhartha Medical College.

JUDGEMENT: In the judgment, educational opportunities must be made available

to all individuals without regard to economic position. If a state decides to carry out
its constitutional responsibilities through private organizations, these institutions must
adhere to the same constitutional criteria as the state. User charges fees at most Indian
institutions make access to education based on income rather than merit; they were
judged to be antithetical to the right to education, as well as arbitrary and in violation
of Article 14 of the Indian Constitution.

3 M.C. Mehta v. State of Tamil Nadu and Others12

FACT: Sivakasi was one of the city in the state of Tamil Nadu which was one of the
most impacted places in the country in terms of child labor. By being concerned about
the terrible situation of child labor in the town, M.C. Mehta, a solicitous lawyer,
submitted a petition under Article 32 of the Indian Constitution. He stated that
employing children in dangerous matchstick manufacturing was both morally
repugnant and unconstitutional. In response to it the government did not contest the
accusations and instead proposed solutions to the situation. As a result, the court
issued specific orders stating the ways to enhance the lives of the afflicted children.

12
Mehta v. State of Tamil Nadu & Ors, 1991 AIR 417 1990 SCR Supl. (2) 518 1991 SCC (1) 283 JT 1990 (4) 263 1990 SCALE
(2)947
However, a disaster happened in one of Sivakasi's fireworks companies shortly after
this directive. This occurrence was brought to the court's attention suo moto.

JUDGEMENT : The Supreme Court has deliberated on the constitutional

implications of ending child labour in the Sivakasi Match industry. The Court has
passed comprehensive instructions to eliminate child labour in this dangerous
profession for anyone under the age of 14. Employers must follow the rules of the
Child Labour act, according to the Court. The Court has stated that the eradication of
child labor is unquestionably a matter of major public concern and importance.

7.SC JUDGEMENT & RTE ACT, 2010

The Supreme court in a Judgement in 2011 was in view that it was the right of every
child to get free and compulsory education. Children between 6 -14 years of age have
the right to free and compulsory education at any neighborhood school until the age of
14. Therefore the RTE Act came into force on April 1, 2010.13

8.CONCLUSION
The updated education is a set of comprehensive guidelines and recommendation for
the Indian Education system. It represents a major shift in the Indian education
system. The success of new NEP will necessitate ongoing effort and commitment on
the part of the government, educators, and a large segment of society. The NEP
recognize the role of parents and communities in the education of children. The policy
for parent-teacher association and community-based education programs. It can play
an active role in children’s education 14

13
INDIA CONST. art. 21, § 21(A).
14
Id.at 8