Poor planning, continuing vacancies, and delay in the release of funds and their utilisation by the Delhi government have become a hurdle in the implementation of Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, in the national Capital, apex auditor Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) observed in its report on Friday.
Poor planning, continuing vacancies, and delay in the release of funds and their utilisation by the Delhi government have become a hurdle in the implementation of Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, in the national Capital, apex auditor Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) observed in its report on Friday.
The CAG stated that the incumbent government in the Capital failed to complete the mandatory household survey for a database of all children from their birth till 14 years of age. "In the absence of such crucial data, it was not possible for the government to ensure enrolment of every child in the age group of 6-14 years in school," stated the report, covering a period of 2010-16. "No specific target for enrolment of children was fixed by the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) and local bodies," it added.
Under the Right To Education (RTE) Act, 2009, every child in the age group of 6-14 years is entitled to free and compulsory elementary education.
The report further highlighted a significant drop in the percentage of enrollment of students in Class I in the government and aided schools. "Enrollment in Class I in government and aided schools decreases by 23 per cent from 204,884 in 2010-11 to 156,991 in 2015-16," it said.
In case of children with disabilities and those from economically weaker sections, the government failed yet again, with only 90,262 children from this category admitted against 145,142 seats, which should have been reserved for them during 2011-16, the audit report stated.
"Uniform, textbooks, and writing material were not distributed to all students of 34 selected Municipal Corporation schools, and where provided, they were issued with delay," it stated. Surprisingly, not even a single student at aided municipal schools has received study material or uniform, it added.
The situation was much more serious in terms of teachers' recruitment. "In the Directorate schools, 8,579 out of 38,916 sanctioned posts of teachers and librarians were lying vacant as of July 2016," the report stated.
The shabby state of infrastructure was also highlighted by the CAG. "Rs 18.29 crore were sanctioned during 2015-16 to UEEM for construction of additional classrooms, halls, toilets, and boundaries. As much as 69-81 per cent of the construction work remained unexecuted by the north and south Municipal Corporations as of June 2016," it stated. The report has come two days after the Delhi government announced its budget, in which Education department got 24 per cent of the total outlay, with an allocation rise from Rs 10,690 crore to Rs 11,300 crore.
Report card
Enrollment in Class I in government and aided schools decreases by 23 per cent, from 204,884 in 2010-11 to 156,991 in 2015-16.
Only 90,262 children from disabled and economically weaker sections admitted against 145,142 during 2011-16.
Uniform, textbooks, and writing material not given to even a single student at aided schools of Municipal Corporation.
In Directorate schools, 8,579 out of 38,916 sanctioned posts of teachers and librarians lying vacant.
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