Maharashtra commission to monitor RTE

The State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (SCPCR) has been started, on the lines of its national counterpart, to monitor the implementation of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 in the state. Under this commission, public hearings will be held where the community will get a platform to raise their voices on RTE.

In a few districts across Maharashtra, similar exercises were conducted in April 2011.  Recent figures by the SCPCR indicate that 120 complaints have been received by the department for non-implementation of RTE. “SCPCR has invited all civil society groups, students, teachers, administrators, artists, government officials, legislators and members of the judiciary apart from all other stakeholders to join hands and work together to build a movement to ensure that every child is in school and gets at least 8 years of quality education,” said an official from SCPCR.

RTE Act 2009, that became effective from April 1, 2010, makes elementary education a fundamental right under Article 21 (A) of the Constitution. Every child in the age group of 6-14 will be provided elementary education in the age-appropriate classroom in the vicinity of his/her neighbourhood. Any cost that prevents a child from accessing school will be borne by the state.