Children´s right to education is inscribed in the Indian constitution since the 1950´s. At that time, children going to school numbered 22 million. Today´s figure is 85 million, yet 25% of the total Indian child population are left outside of the educational program (SIDA report on the Rajasthan Educational Project).
According to the World Bank estimate, India in year 2000 will have the world´s highest concentration of illiterates; 58,8% of the global illiteracy in the 15-19 age bracket.
Most Indian children leave school during the first five years in pre-school. as many as 50% of the already during the first year. The reason being that Indian children are needed at home; elder sisters to look after the smaller family members, sons to help out with farming or otherwise contribute to familysupport. The Indian familysystem being such as it is, lacking in social security, social insurance, subsidies to parents, organized pensions and day nurseries, simply offers no alternative. The children are needed at home, school is of secondary imporstance. As soon as the child learnt to read and write he´s taken back home.
India is the only country in the world where the average lifespan of women is shorter than the average lifespan of men (SIDA´s Fieldguide, INDIEN, nr 1 1987). Not because the women by nature should be weaker in India, but simply because her life is worth less. through a very expensive dowry system (where the girl´s parents has to pay the bridegroom´s family an amount of money when the daughter is getting married) the Indian woman has become a burden to her family, one tries to get rid of either by abortion of female foetus or by killing the girl immideately after the delivery, or more indirectly by giving her less food and withholding her from medical care, while growing up.
Accordingly, many rural-, tribal- and poor families do not consider it important that girls get education and learn to read and write. For poor federal states such as Bihar, illiteracy among tribal women oscilliates around 90% (The Economist, "Survey India", May 1993). One should have in mind though, that western technology is practically non-existent in these parts. But there are exceptions. Kerala tops all Indian states for literacy, with 86,9% of women being able to read. Kerala though, is a dravidian state and traditionally matriarchal. The lowest literacy is to be found in Kashmir and Rajasthan, the latter having 15-20% female literacy, the male figure being 55% (David Ståhl,Empatum survey, EMPATUM AB, Stockholm)
Education to counter India´s problems
When the lines for India´s international educational policy were drawn up in 1965, progress was supposed to leap ahead. Quite soon it became clear, that raising the literacy level in India was no such easy thing.
In 1985 the then Minister of Education, K.C.Pant, issued his "Challenge of education", establishing that india´s only chance to cope with the future and the world market competition lies in a serious investment in education. To quote K.C.Pant´s omn words:" Education is the most effective instrument to meet these challenges. Only education can imbue people with the knowledge, the sence of purpose and the confidence essential for building a dynamic, vibrant and cohesive nation capable of providing its people with the wherewithal for creating a better, fuller and more purposeful life."(K.C.Pant, Challenge of Education, New Dehli, 1985, Ministry of Education)
The severest obstacle to give India´s children a basic education is the lack of sufficient funds.
From 1960 to 1980 the literacy in India rose from 24% to 365, less impressive however compared to Malaysia´s rise from 23% to 60% over the same period, or to China where literacy now has estimated to 77%.(The Economist,May 1993)
In spite of the will to fight poverty and promote education, higher priority is given to the military defensce forces. Even if education constitutes a heavy item of the Indian national budget, its 3% cuts a rather poor figure compared with the 6-8% investments of other counties (The Economist).
Thus, the severest obstacle to give India´s children a basic education is the lack of sufficient funds. Investment on a larger scale would enhance the motivation of teachers and their chances of producing a meaningful education. Still, teachers are underpaid, meaning unsufficient stimulus to do their job and therefor their often failing to report to work. Another reason why the teachers do not always come to their classes is the fact that the salaries are irregularly paid, if at all.
..And schools lack equipement. According to the "Challenge Report" funds for schoolbuildings and teaching-materials are almost nonexistent: of primary schools 9% are without buildings, only 60,3% have a black-board, only 29,5% possess a library and the books are usually damaged by damp and without pictures. Schools do not provide meals, nor is the education free, just as school books have to be paid for.
The goal set up -a free, mandatory education for all Indian children- has so far in 1993 failed miserably to be reached. To this day, some 255 of all Indian children have not even a school within reach.
