As per the findings, only 18% of the schools had separate toilets for girls and around 49% of them had common toilets for staff and students.
About 11% of the government schools in India do not have toilets while 20% of them do not have safe drinking water, according to a survey conducted by an NGO.
The study by Child Care and You was conducted in 642 government schools (primary and upper primary) across the country.
Titled 'Learning Blocks', the study claims that there are significant lapses in the Right to Education (RTE) Act since its implementation in 2009.
Important provisions under the Act like school infrastructure, toilets, drinking water facilities, student-teacher ratio is not at 100%, it says.
As per the findings, only 18% of the schools had separate toilets for girls and around 49% of them had common toilets for staff and students.
"CRY's experience on-ground points to the fact that the lack of basic infrastructure — especially facilities for drinking water and separate toilets for girls — is one of the key factors that push children out of school," CEO of CRY, Puja Marwaha said.
Non-availability of head teachers was reported in 28% of the primary schools and 31% of the upper primary schools. In 18% of the schools, the mid-day meals were either not cooked inside a designated kitchen or did not have a kitchen space at all.
The findings also show poor infrastructure in most of the government schools. Almost 63% of the schools did not have a boundary wall, 39% of the primary schools and about 52% of the upper primary schools are without classrooms.
Around 58% of the schools did not have separate room for head teachers.
Regarding the age-appropriate admission, proof of age was asked for in 61% of the schools while around 46% of them asked for transfer certificate from children at the time of admission, the report says.
The CRY's study covered 71 districts of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. Besides these 13 states, schools in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata were also included in the study.
When asked as to why this study concentrated only on government schools, Marwaha said, "Only government schools can provide free education to underprivileged children. And the section of the society (poor children) we serve goes to these schools only. Also, we want every children to receive education through government system only."
On whether the funds allocated by the government for implementing the RTE are sufficient, Marwaha said when the government passes any Act, it must be backed up with enough resources.
"The government do allocate funds but whether they are utilised is something that needs to be questioned. It can be the subject of our next study," Vijaylakshmi Arora, head of Policy and Advocacy, CRY, said.
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