Friday, March 28, 2014

NATIONAL LITERACY MISSION

National Literacy Mission

Literacy is the backbone of a progressive and the heartbeat of a developing nation. A literate nation is free from any kind of slavery and open to varied arenas of progress. But, to remove the scourge of illiteracy from a vast country like India is a tough mission. To convert this tough mission into an achievable one, the Government of India initiated the National Literacy Mission (NLM)- External website that opens in a new window in 1988. The mission aims at imparting functional literacy to millions of Indians, especially those in the age-bracket of 15-35 years.

The National Literacy Mission works at two levels:

General Council
Executive Council

The General Council is headed by the Ministry of Human Affairs and the Executive Council by the Secretary (Elementary Education and Literacy). The Directorate of Adult Education provides necessary technical and resource support to the National Literacy Mission Authority (NLMA).

The following are the three major campaigns under the National Literacy Mission:

TOTAL LITERACY CAMPAIGNS (TLC)- EXTERNAL WEBSITE THAT OPENS IN A NEW WINDOW

This model is the dominant strategy for the eradication of adult illiteracy in India. TLC campaigns are area-specific, time-bound, volunteer-based, cost-effective and outcome-oriented. The campaigns are implemented through district-level literacy committees which are registered under the Societies Registration Act as independent and autonomous bodies to provide a unified umbrella under which a number of individuals and organisations work together.

POST LITERACY PROGRAMME (PLP)- EXTERNAL WEBSITE THAT OPENS IN A NEW WINDOW

Post-literacy programmes attempt to give interested learners an opportunity to harness and develop their learning potentials after completion of a course in basic literacy. Post literacy programmes are open to neo-literates in the age group of 9-35 who have completed the basic literacy course under the total literacy campaigns, dropouts from primary schools and pass outs from Non formal Education (NFE) programmes.

CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAMME (CEP)- EXTERNAL WEBSITE THAT OPENS IN A NEW WINDOW

After the impingement of literacy and adult education programmes another challenge that came before the National Literacy Mission was to create a Continuing Education System and maintain a channelled continuous and life-long learning process. Thus, the scheme of Continuing Education was taken up. The Continuing Education Scheme is multi-faceted and is postulated on the principles of treating basic literacy, post literacy and later continuing education. Above all the scheme aims at addressing the socio-economic situations of the community to provide infrastructure for larger development initiatives.

View the state-wise position(External website that opens in a new window) of Total Literacy Campaigns (TLC), Post Literacy Programme (PLP) and Continuing Education Programme (CEP) sanction status.

SUPPORT TO NON GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS(EXTERNAL WEBSITE THAT OPENS IN A NEW WINDOW)

NLM also provides assistance to NGOs in the field of adult education. The objective of the Scheme is to secure extensive involvement ofNGOs in National Literacy Mission. NLM provides monetary grants to NGOs for undertaking projects of basic literacy, post-literacy continuing education and other projects, including evaluation of literacy/adult education programmes and for establishing resource centers. This scheme widens the scope of NLM as NGOs operating in remote areas can undertake literacy projects and educate rural people.

View the highlights of 2001 census literacy rate(External website that opens in a new window) in the States and UTs of India.

NGOs can apply for financial assistance for carrying out literacy missions by downloading the Application Form for NGOs(External website that opens in a new window)

NLM AND WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT

NLM has played a significant role in creating an environment where women themselves demand knowledge and study to empower themselves. As a result of these literacy programmes, the female literacy rate during the period 1991-2001 increased by 14.87%. This was 3.15% more compared to male literacy rate that was 11.72% in 1991-2001. This substantiates the role NLM has played in women empowerment.

Realising the critical importance of education in development of the country, in the last few years, the Government of India has increased its investment in education and have taken several positive steps towards exploring the potential of technologies at all levels of education. National Literacy Mission is one such great step towards educating India.

National Literacy Mission

The National Literacy Miss

ion works at two levels:

1. General Council

2. Executive Council

The following are the three major campaigns under the National Literacy Mission:

TOTAL LITERACY CAMPAIGNS (TLC)- EXTERNAL WEBSITE THAT OPENS IN A NEW WINDOW

POST LITERACY PROGRAMME (PLP)- EXTERNAL WEBSITE THAT OPENS IN A NEW WINDOW

CONTINUING EDUCATION PROGRAMME (CEP)- EXTERNAL WEBSITE THAT OPENS IN A NEW WINDOW

SUPPORT TO NON GOVERNMENTAL ORGANISATIONS(EXTERNAL WEBSITE THAT OPENS IN A NEW WINDOW)

View the highlights of 2001 census literacy rate(External website that opens in a new window) in the States and UTs of India.

NGOs can apply for financial assistance for carrying out literacy missions by downloading the Application Form for NGOs(External website that opens in a new window)

NLM AND WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT

TOTAL LITERACY CAMPAIGN

The Total Literacy Campaigns (TLC) model is now accepted as the dominant strategy for eradication of adult illiteracy in India. These campaigns are area-specific, time-bound, volunteer-based, cost-effective and outcome-oriented. The thrust is on attainment of functional literacy through prescribed norms of literacy and numeracy. The learner is the focal point in the entire process and measurement of learning outcome is continuous, informal, participative and non-threatening.

The campaign is implemented in stages, which may be overlapping at times. These should be understood clearly and followed meticulously.

· Preparing the Ground - The initiation of a total literacy campaign begins with a process of consultation and consensus, involving political parties, teachers, students and cultural groups. A core team is identified and the project is formulated.

· Creation of the Organisational Structure - The campaigns are implemented through district-level literacy committees which are registered under the Societies Registration Act as independent and autonomous bodies to provide a unified umbrella under which a number of individuals and organisations work together. Leadership is provided by the district collector/chief secretary and the zila parishad (district council). All sections of society are given due representation in planning and implementation of the programme. The structure rests on three pillars - participatory people's committees, full-time functionaries and area coordinators, and a support system provided by government officials. It forms an interactive and a communicative process of management and implementation. The campaign is delivered through volunteers without any expectation of reward or incentive.

· Survey and District Profile - A detailed survey is conducted in the district, to enumerate and identify the non-literate people. The process of the survey also provides opportunities for person contact and interaction. During the survey, volunteer teachers and master trainers are also identified.

· Environment Building - This is an extremely important part of the total literacy campaigns, where mass mobilisation takes place through a multifaceted communication strategy, which creates the right environment and enthusiasm for teaching-learning activities. The success of a total literacy campaign depends to a large extent, on the effectiveness with which all sections of society are mobilised.

The basic objective of the environment building stage is to generate a demand for literacy. Its momentum has to be sustained - it must not merely precede the campaign, but pervade it throughout. Environment building includes:

· Mobilising public opinion

· Creating community participation

· Sensitising educated sections of the community and recruiting them as volunteers

· Mobilising and motivating non-literate people to become literate

Several media are utilised for environment building. Effective results have been obtained by using folk art forms, jathas, street plays, nukkad nataks, bhajans and kirtans as also padyatras, literacy walls, etc.

Kamarajar district in Tamil Nadu launched its total literacy campaigns on the 50th anniversary of the Quit India Movement and called it 'Quit Illiteracy Movement'. More than 1,000 performances of jathas were held. An effigy of the demon of illiteracy was burnt. Buffaloes and elephants were painted with literacy slogans and taken around on the streets, to create an interest in literacy. Letters and words were hung from trees; there were wall writings in many places. There was a monthly radio programme on literacy as well as a monthly newsletter. Amongst the learners were rickshaw-pullers, Muslim women and members of the nomadic gypsy tribe. Building on this, six campaigns were integrated in the post literacy stage - health, legal literacy, freedom struggle, disaster management, small savings and water management in agriculture. Also, libraries were opened in each village.

· Development of Teaching-Learning Materials - The objective is to make the materials relevant, while keeping the larger national canvas and its concerns in view. The materials are based on an innovative pedagogy called Improved Pace and Content of Learning (IPCL) that incorporates motivation-oriented teaching-learning material books especially suited for neo-literates and adults have been prepared. A 3-grade primer is used with each grade corresponding to a different level of literacy. The primer contains exercises, tests and space for practice to achieve the objective of imparting literacy in 200 hours.

· Training of the Task Force - Training is conducted through key resource persons and master trainers - one master trainer for every 25 to 30 volunteer teachers, and one key resource person for every 25-30 master trainers. First the key resource persons are trained, who in turn train the master trainers. Volunteer teachers are then trained by the master trainers in batches.

· Actual Learning Process - There are three progressive sets of primers. Each primer is an integrated one, in the sense that it combines workbook, exercise book, tools of evaluation of learning outcome, certification etc. The entire process is based on the principle of self-evaluation. The tests are simple and participative. Every learner is free to attain the desired level according to his/her convenience. It is, however, expected that a learner should be able to complete all the three primers within the overall duration of 200 hours spread over six to eight months.

· Monitoring and Evaluation - Monitoring and supervision of total literacy campaigns is done through a periodic system of reporting, and visits of the officials of the National Literacy Mission, State Directorates of Adult/Mass Education and the State Resource Centres. The management information system in a campaign is based on the twin principles of participation and correction. It has to be accountable, credible and instead of being enrolment-oriented, it has to be outcome-oriented.

Though the total literacy campaign is meant to impart functional literacy, it also disseminates a 'basket' of other socially relevant messages, such as enrolment and retention of children in schools; immunisation; propagation of small family norms; promotion of maternity and childcare; women's equality; and empowerment, peace and communal harmony.

The achievement of total literacy campaigns has been slower in the Hindi speaking states of Bihar, Haryana, Punjab, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh. The conditions are different and demand innovative approaches.

However, despite the slow take-off, the essence and the spirit of the campaign remain the same.

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

RIGHT TO EDUCATION

SALIENT FEATURES OF RIGHT TO EDUCATION

The Constitution (Eighty-sixth Amendment) Act, 2002 inserted Article 21-A in the Constitution of India to provide free and compulsory education of all children in the age group of six to fourteen years as a Fundamental Right in such a manner as the State may, by law, determine. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, which represents the consequential legislation envisaged under Article 21-A, means that every child has a right to full time elementary education of satisfactory and equitable quality in a formal school which satisfies certain essential norms and standards.

Article 21-A and the RTE Act came into effect on 1 April 2010. The title of the RTE Act incorporates the words ‘free and compulsory’. ‘Free education’ means that no child, other than a child who has been admitted by his or her parents to a school which is not supported by the appropriate Government, shall be liable to pay any kind of fee or charges or expenses which may prevent him or her from pursuing and completing elementary education. ‘Compulsory education’ casts an obligation on the appropriate Government and local authorities to provide and ensure admission, attendance and completion of elementary education by all children in the 6-14 age group. With this, India has moved forward to a rights based framework that casts a legal obligation on the Central and State Governments to implement this fundamental child right as enshrined in the Article 21A of the Constitution, in accordance with the provisions of the RTE Act.

The RTE Act provides for the:

(i) Right of children to free and compulsory education till completion of elementary education in a neighbourhood school.

(ii) It clarifies that ‘compulsory education’ means obligation of the appropriate government to provide free elementary education and ensure compulsory admission, attendance and completion of elementary education to every child in the six to fourteen age group. ‘Free’ means that no child shall be liable to pay any kind of fee or charges or expenses which may prevent him or her from pursuing and completing elementary education.

(iii) It makes provisions for a non-admitted child to be admitted to an age appropriate class.

(iv) It specifies the duties and responsibilities of appropriate Governments, local authority and parents in providing free and compulsory education, and sharing of financial and other responsibilities between the Central and State Governments.

(v) It lays down the norms and standards relating inter alia to Pupil Teacher Ratios (PTRs), buildings and infrastructure, school-working days, teacher-working hours.

(vi) It provides for rational deployment of teachers by ensuring that the specified pupil teacher ratio is maintained for each school, rather than just as an average for the State or District or Block, thus ensuring that there is no urban-rural imbalance in teacher postings. It also provides for prohibition of deployment of teachers for non-educational work, other than decennial census, elections to local authority, state legislatures and parliament, and disaster relief.

(vii) It provides for appointment of appropriately trained teachers, i.e. teachers with the requisite entry and academic qualifications.

(viii) It prohibits (a) physical punishment and mental harassment; (b) screening procedures for admission of children; (c) capitation fee; (d) private tuition by teachers and (e) running of schools without recognition,

(ix) It provides for development of curriculum in consonance with the values enshrined in the Constitution, and which would ensure the all-round development of the child, building on the child’s knowledge, potentiality and talent and making the child free of fear, trauma and anxiety through a system of child friendly and child centred learning.

Education is a fundamental human right, essential for the empowerment and development of an individual and the society as a whole. According to the UNESCO's 'Education for All Global Monitoring Report 2010, about 135 countries have constitutional provision for free and non-discriminatory education for all. In 1950, India made a Constitutional commitment to provide free and compulsory education to all children up to the age of 14, by adding this provision in article 45 of the directive principles of state policy.

With the 86th Constitutional amendment on 12^th December 2002, Article 21A was amended by the Constitution in order to introduce Right to Education as a fundamental right.

The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act finally came into force on 1^st April 2010. The Act provides for free and compulsory education to all children in the age group of six to fourteen years. It is now a legally enforceable duty of the Centre and the states, to provide free and compulsory education.

The Act has the following major provisions

Every child between the age of six to fourteen years, shall have the right to free and compulsory education in a neighbourhood school, till completion of elementary education.
For this purpose, no child shall be liable to pay any kind of fee or charges or expenses which may prevent him or her from pursuing and completing elementary education.
Where a child above six years of age has not been admitted to any school or though admitted, could not complete his or her elementary education, then, he or she shall be admitted in a class appropriate to his or her age.
For carrying out the provisions of this Act, the appropriate government and local authority shall establish a school, if it is not established, within the given area, within a period of three years, from the commencement of this Act.
The Central and the State Governments shall have concurrent responsibility for providing funds for carrying out the provisions of this Act.

This Act is an essential step towards improving each child's accessibility to secondary and higher education. The Act also contains specific provisions for disadvantaged groups, such as child labourers, migrant children, children with special needs, or those who have a disadvantage owing to social, cultural, economical, geographical, linguistic, gender or any such factor. With the implementation of this Act, it is also expected that issues of school drop out, out-of-school children, quality of education and availability of trained teachers would be addressed in the short to medium term plans.

The enforcement of the Right to Education Act brings the country closer to achieving the objectives and mission of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Education for All (EFA) and hence is a historic step taken by the Government of India.

Monday, March 3, 2014

FOREST RIGHT ACT-2006

RIGHT OF TRIBALS AND OTHER FOREST-DWELLERS RECOGNISED UNDER THE FOREST RIGHT ACT-2006

Backgrounder

In order to provide the land and forest rights to the tribals and other forest dwellers, the Government has enacted the Scheduled Tribes and other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, notified for operation with effect from 31.12.2007. The Act will undo the historical injustice done to tribals and Forest dwellers living there for last three generations, before13th December 2005, by providing them following rights-

RIGHTS RECOGNIZED BY THE ACT

Ø Right to hold and live in the forestland under the individual or common occupation for habitation or for self-cultivation for livelihood by a member or members of a forest dwelling Scheduled Tribe or other traditional forest dwellers.

Ø Community rights such as nistar, by whatever name called, including those used in erstwhile Princely States, zamindari or such intermediary regimes.

Ø Right of ownership, access to collect, use and dispose of minor forest produce which has been traditionally collected within or outside village boundaries.

Ø Other community rights of uses or entitlements such as fish and other products of water bodies, grazing (both settled or transhumant) and traditional seasonal resource access of nomadic or pastoralist communities.

Ø Rights including community tenures of habitat and habitation for primitive tribal groups and pre-agricultural communities.

Ø Rights in or over disputed lands under any nomenclature in any State where claims are disputed.

Ø Rights for conversion of pattas or leases or grants issued by any local authority or any State Government on forestlands to titles.

Ø Rights of settlement and conversion of all forest villages, old habitation, unsurveyed villages and other villages in forests, whether recorded, notified or not into revenue villages.

Ø Right to protect, regenerate or conserve or manage any community forest resources which they have been traditionally protecting and conserving for sustainable use.

Ø Rights which are recognized under any State law or laws of any Autonomous district Council or Autonomous Regional Council or which are accepted as rights of tribals under any traditional or customary law of the concerned tribe of any State.

Ø Right of access to biodiversity and community right to intellectual property and traditional knowledge related to biodiversity and cultural diversity.

Ø Any other traditional right customarily enjoyed by the forest dwelling Scheduled Tribes or other traditional forest dwellers, as the case may be, but excluding the traditional right of hunting or trapping or extracting a part of the body of any species of wild animal.

Ø Right to in situ rehabilitation including alternative land in cases where the Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers have been illegally evicted or displaced from forest land of any description without receiving their legal entitlement to rehabilitation prior to the 13^th day of December, 2005.

What is the Forest Rights Act about?

Millions of people live in and near India's forest lands, but have no legal right to their homes, lands or livelihoods. A few government officials have all power over forests and forest dwellers. The result? Both forests and people die. This Act recognises forest dwellers' rights and makes conservation more accountable.

Why is this law necessary?

What are called "forests” in Indian law often have nothing to do with actual forests. Under the Indian Forest Act, areas were often declared to be "government forests" without recording who lived in these areas, what land they were using, what uses they made of the forest and so on.82% of Madhya forest blocks and 40% of Orissa's reserved forests were never surveyed; similarly 60% of India's national parks have till today (sometimes after 25 years, as in Sariska) not completed their process of enquiry and settlement of rights. As the Tiger Task Force of the Government of India put it, "in the name of conservation, what has been carried out is a completely illegal and unconstitutional land acquisition programme."

What are conditions like in the forest areas?

Because of this situation, millions of people are subject to harassment, evictions, etc, on the pretext of being encroachers in their own homes. Torture, bonded labour, extortion of money and sexual assault are all extremely common. In the latest national eviction drive from 2002 onwards, more than 3,00,000 families were driven into destitution and starvation. In Madhya Pradesh alone, more than 125 villages have been burned to the ground.

The situation is so bad that the then Commissioner for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, in his 29th Report, said that "The criminalisation of the entire communities in the tribal areas is the darkest blot on the liberal tradition of our country."

Why were people's rights not respected when these forests were declared?

The Indian Forest Act, 1927, India's main forest law, had nothing to do with conservation. It was created to serve the British need for timber. It sought to override customary rights and forest management systems by declaring forests state property and exploiting their timber. The law says that, at the time a "forest” is declared, a single official (the Forest Settlement Officer) is to enquire into and "settle” the land and forest rights people had in that area. These all-powerful officials unsurprisingly either did nothing or recorded only the rights of powerful communities.

The same model was subsequently built into the Wild Life Protection Act, passed in 1972, with similar consequences.

Mistakes may have been made, but surely these laws are the best way to protect our forests?

It is not just people who have lost. The very purpose of the Forest Acts was to convert forests into the property of a colonial department; and when you convert an ecosystem into someone's property, there will always be stronger claims to that property than conservation. To destroy a forest today requires nothing more than either a bribe to the local forest officer or an application to a committee in Delhi. The results include:

The loss of more than 90% of India's grasslands to commercial Forest Department plantations.

The destruction of five lakh hectares of forest in the past five years alone for mines, dams and industrial projects;

The clearing of millions of hectares of forest for monoculture plantations by the Forest Department;

Recent proposals to privatise "degraded” forest lands for private companies' timber plantations.

Moreover, the forest laws destroyed all the community management and regulation systems that had existed before, forcing people to choose between either abandoning the forest entirely or living as 'criminals' within or near it. To this day it is a criminal offence for you or I to plant a tree in a reserved forest; but it is legal for the Department to fell the entire forest so long as it has Central government permission.

What does the Forest Rights Act do?

The Act basically does two things:

· Grants legal recognition to the rights of traditional forest dwelling communities, partially correcting the injustice caused by the forest laws.

· Makes a beginning towards giving communities and the public a voice in forest and wildlife conservation.

Who is a forest dweller under this law, and who gets rights?

There are two stages to be eligible under this Act. First, everyone has to satisfy two conditions:

1. Primarily residing in forests or forest lands;

2. Depends on forests and forest land for a livelihood (namely "bona fide livelihood needs")

Second, you have to prove:

· That the above conditions have been true for 75 years, in which case you are an Other Traditional Forest Dweller (s. 2(o));

· That you are a member of a Scheduled Tribe (s. 2(c)); and

· That you are residing in the area where they are Scheduled (s. 4(1)).

In the latter case you are a Forest Dwelling Scheduled Tribe.

What kind of rights do forest dwellers get under this Act?

The law recognises three types of rights:

LandRights

No one gets rights to any land that they have not been cultivating prior to December 13, 2005 (see section 4(3)) and that they are not cultivating right now. Those who are cultivating land but don't have document can claim up to 4 hectares, as long as they are cultivating the land themselves for a livelihood (section 3(1) (a) and 4(6)). Those who have a patta or a government lease, but whose land has been illegally taken by the Forest Department or whose land is the subject of a dispute between Forest and Revenue Departments, can claim those lands (see section 3(1)(f) and (g)).

There is no question of granting 4 hectares of land to every family. If I am cultivating half a hectare on December 13, 2005, I receive title to that half a hectare alone; and if I am cultivating nothing, I receive nothing. If I am cultivating more than 4 hectares without documents or a dispute, I receive title to only 4 hectares.

The land cannot be sold or transferred to anyone except by inheritance (see section 4(4)).

UseRights

The law secondly provides for rights to use and/or collect the following:

a. Minor forest produce things like tendu patta, herbs, medicinal plants etc “that has been traditionally collected (see section 3(1) (c)). This does not include timber.

b. Grazing grounds and water bodies (sections 3

c. Traditional areas of use by nomadic or pastoralist communities i.e. communities that move with their herds, as opposed to practicing settled agriculture.

Right to Protect and Conserve

though the forest is supposed to belong to all of us, till date no one except the Forest Department had a right to protect it. If the Forest Department should decide to destroy it, or to hand it over to someone who would, stopping them was a criminal offence.

For the first time, this law also gives the community the right to protect and manage the forest. Section 3(1) (i) provide a right and a power to conserve community forest resources, while section 5 gives the community a general power to protect wildlife, forests, etc. This is vital for the thousands of village communities who are protecting their forests and wildlife against threats from forest mafias, industries and land grabbers, most of whom operate in connivance with the Forest Department.

How are rights recognised?

Section 6 of the Act provides a transparent three step procedure for deciding on who gets rights. First, the gram sabha (full village assembly, NOT the gram panchayat) makes a recommendation - i.e who has been cultivating land for how long, which minor forest produce is collected, etc. The gram sabha plays this role because it is a public body where all people participate, and hence is fully democratic and transparent. The gram sabha's recommendation goes through two stages of screening committees at the taluka and district levels. The district level committee makes the final decision (see section 6(6)). The Committees have six members - three government officers and three elected persons. At both the taluka and the district levels, any person who believes a claim is false can appeal to the Committees, and if they prove their case the right is denied (sections 6(2) and 6(4)). Finally, land recognised under this Act cannot be sold or transferred.

SAROJ SAMAL'S IAS

Friday, March 28, 2014