An interaction with a Child Rights activist

Campaign for Learning outcome, Siddipet district

N.Janardhan, a retired headmaster currently working as Co-convener in Campaign for Learning Outcome in Telangana state. He has been an active participant in the child rights movement in United Andhra Pradesh. We had an interaction about the history of it and the following of the history is given below.
A movement was formed from the community in 1993, which was based on the “Child Right” and education was one of the principal motives of it. In Andhra Pradesh, child labor was extremely visible in every village children were working on cattle rearing, household work, landlord houses etc.
There was no awareness in the community about the fundamental rights that state every child from 6 to 14 years have right to get an education, Some of the parents who think that their children should get an education they go to school and others go to landlord houses to work. So, in order to break this chain, a movement was started which include civil society organization involved in building awareness in the community.
 At the state level, the first M Venkatarangaiya Foundation was established. He was one of the freedom fighters in the independence of India. He started the movement in his community by providing a lamp to every household in the village for the children to study at night. The movement was kept alive and his family founded the organization on his name.

His granddaughter Prof. Shanta Sinha of Central University and a Padma Shree awardee started the movement. She is the Chairperson of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights.
So the movement started in the village called Shankarpalli in Rangareddy district. First, they started with the bonded labor in the state then the movement took turns towards the children right to education. The movement has five principles:
1.    Every 6 to 14 age children should be in school not at work. If the children are not found in school than it should be called as child labor.
2.    The community should also talk about the children’s health as they should not work at home as well.
3.    The community should be child labor free.
4.    The government should also implement it with the policies.
5.    Right to education implementation as an Act.
There was implication regarding the politics of implementation of the act from the center where the reason was stated that it takes too much budget in the sector. So the government wanted to apply it to the fundamental rules, where it states that the government will provide education in the coming 10 years but it was not made compulsory education.
A movement was started on the right to education at the community level where the MLA’s were pressured from the community and agenda on education was discussed.
In 2009, the Right to Education Act was implemented which make free and compulsory education for the children aged from 6 years to 14 years. There are some problems seen regarding the age gaps in the student. For example, if children of 11 years join than what should be the class. So therefore for that age gap for every individual student, a system was formed “Bridge Course System” where the student of the age below 9 years was put through 7 month course for the standard of I to V and above 9 years of students were put to one and a half years of special course for standard VII to VIII.
The Right to Education Act ten principle was added
1.    Free and compulsory education for the children from 6 to 14 years of age.
2.    The state shall be responsible to provide education to every child.
3.    The curriculum consists of constitutional values.
4.    Quality teacher appointment.
5.    Quality schools management.
6.    Social reforms functionary- admission at any school throughout the year.
7.    Admission without any certificate if the parents
8.    Child protection functionary – National Child Right Commission and State Child right Commission was set up.
9.    Involvement of civil society – school management committee was formed.
10.    No exam pressure for students.
In order for the success of the movement the involvement of civil society, student organization, community-based organization, NGO, and teacher have participated.

By Bodhi R Chakma