Literacy quotient

The Constitution 83rd Amendment Bill, guaranteeing eight years of elementary education to every Indian child, was introduced in Parliament in December 1997 and has been hanging fire ever since. That it has taken so long for the problem it seeks to address to figure on the political agenda eloquently testifies to the low priority education is accorded in the general scheme of things. This may, perhaps, have something to do with the manner in which national security is defined in this country. The fact that the growing number of illiterates in absolute numbers constitutes as much of a security risk to the country as unguarded borders is not immediately apparent to everyone. Yet innumerable educationists and social scientists have argued that had India concentrated on ensuring elementary education for its children, it would have been more respected as a world power today. Indeed, many countries in Asia, from a large one like China to the tiny city state of Singapore, perceived quite early the crucial role ofbasic education in national development and are today reaping the benefits of that realisation.

Now it appears that the Constitution 83rd Amendment Bill is to figure in the Winter session of Parliament and, on Thursday, the Cabinet at long last gave its assent to the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan SSA which envisages providing every child eight full years of schooling 8212; from age six to age 14 8212; by the year 2010. The goal is to be reached in a staggered fashion. First, by 2003 to be precise, all children are to be either in school, in employment guarantee centres or attending 8220;bridge courses8221;. Five years later, the state hopes that at least every child would have received five years of education until finally it can claim to have cent per cent school attendance. Whether all this will actually get translated into policy only the future will reveal, but finding the Rs 1,000 crore that is necessary to make this a reality is not going to be easy, given the government8217;s defence and other priorities.

Educationists have also rightly asked, what happens to the child8217;s education before he or she reaches the age of six? They argue that talking of schooling a child from age six upwards represents a rollback of state commitment to providing universal basic education, which necessarily includes early childhood care and education. They also quote the Constitutional directive that 8220;the state shall endeavour to provide8230; free and compulsory education for all children until they complete the age of 148221;. It is to be hoped that when the Bill comes up for discussion in Parliament, all these aspects will be discussed threadbare. As of now, the Vajpayee government seems to be more committed to imparting an ideological spin to school education, such as it is, rather than in ensuring that every child gets into school. Instead of tossing around arcane concepts such as 8220;spirituality quotient8221;, and the like, Union HRD Minister Murli Manohar Joshi and company would be better employed in firming up a 8220;literacy quotient8221;for this country.