SC asks states, UTs to reply on plea alleging violation of RTE

The Petitioner has filed a Petition as public interest litigation under Article 32 directly in the Hon’ble Supreme Court as numerous reports have been released showing systematic and widespread violations of children’s fundamental Right to Education across the country, including violations of numerous specific requirements of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009. The Petition states that the lack of resources and failure to implement provisions of the RTE Act has resulted in a significant decline in education performance.

The petition seeks directions to the states and UTs to recruit and train one lakh additional professionally trained teachers to end the shortage of educators within a year.

The petition also asks for a further direction to the states and UTs to disclose the number of students admitted under the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) quota in the state in accordance with the provisions of the Act.

Based on the data collected from various reports, it is clear that the Right to Education is being violated across the country. These violations have persisted for years and remain today in face of the RTE Act's requirement that they be remedied within three years of it coming into force.

Therefore, the Petitioner has prayed before the Honorable Supreme Court for a Writ of Mandamus or other appropriate writ, order or direction to Respondents, directing that:

The 37.7M children out of school make the transition to RTE compliant schools, by construction of approximately 1,50,000 new schools or the expansion of existing schools, within 6 months of today; that all states complete the required neighbourhood mapping within 6 months of today; and that new schools are constructed within 6 months of the completion of these mappings such that all neighbourhoods have a primary school within 1 KM and an upper primary within 3 KM (as per RTE Model Rules Part IV Section 6); and that all single-classroom schools be upgraded to be in compliance with the RTE Act Schedule 2(i).
The States and Territories recruit and train 100,000 additional professionally trained teachers employed each month to enable the country to close the 1.2 M teacher shortage within 1 year from today; that additional full-time professionally trained teachers necessary to bring the Pupil-Teacher Ratios and the number of Head Teachers and Subject-Specific Teachers in compliance with the RTE Act Schedule 1; and to enable this, that the States and Territories upgrade existing and construct new public sector teacher training centres so as to ensure the availability of these required trained teachers.
The Panachayats and ULBs complete an identification and mapping of all school-age children in their areas , taking special care to include migrant, nomadic, displaced, Dalit, denotified tribe, and other marginalized communities and to ensure that all of them are in RTE compliant schools within 6 months of today;
The States and Union Territories upgrade all deficient schools with the appropriate physical infrastructure so as to be in compliance with the RTE Act Schedule 2 within 6 months of today;
The States and Union Territories regularize and make permanent all contract- and para-teachers in the country;
The States and Union Territories ensure that teachers are not assigned to prohibited non-education duties, including mid-day meal preparation;
The States and Union Territories ensure that all schools have a properly constituted SMC with compositions in compliance with RTE Act Section 21(1).
The Central Government ensures that all schools run under the National Child Labour Project (NCLP) be brought in to compliance with the RTE Act, particularly with respect to physical infrastructure, teaching hours and professionally trained teachers.
The States and Union Territories to ensure that all private schools are registered with the government; to disclose the total number of students admitted under the EWS quota in the entire state in accordance with section 12 of the Act; and to ensure that, within 1 year of today, all the private schools in the state are in compliance with the Act.