The Committee organized the RTE Paper Presentation and Panel Discussion Series on the implementation of the RTE Act, 2009 across different regions in the country in the furtherance of the object of Section 4(k) of the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 and the provisions of the Right to Education Act, 2009. This series was organized across different regions in the country in collaboration with Pro Bono Legal Services, an initiative of Department of Justice, Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy and Indus Action.
This event witnessed participation from 24 premier law universities across the nation which participated through a team of maximum 10 members. The project aimed to collect data on the status of RTE in different regions of the country, analyze challenges and best practices, suggest potential solutions and recommendations, and produce a comprehensive report or policy that integrates the results and inputs from the Paper Presentation and Discussion Series. Furthermore, it aimed was to raise awareness of the deprivation of the right to education, as granted by the RTE Act, and to encourage discussion among various stakeholders regarding potential legal interventions for the implementation of RTE in India.
To fulfil its aim, the Committee had released a questionnaire based on the parameters mandated for the physical infrastructure in schools in the RTE Act made under the guidance of Professor Nalini Juneja. The participating teams were required to physically survey a minimum of 5 primary government schools and prepare a comprehensive report on the state of physical infrastructure in those schools. 12 teams out of the total 24 teams were selected on the basis of their reports for the advance rounds which took place at the premises of National Law University, Jodhpur. Post their selection, the teams participated in a Paper Presentation which was adjudged by esteemed panellists including Professor Nalini Juneja, Advocate Ashok Agarwal, Professor Sushant Chandra, Dr. Kriti Bharati, Advocate Khushboo Vyas, Ms. Pooja Pandey, Ms. Kadambari Agarwal, Ms. Sarbani Chakraborty and Advocate Rahul Chaudhary.
The event also witnessed the participation from the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights [“NCPCR”], Mr. Priyank Kanoongo, who gave the inaugural address. The panel along with the guests, Shri Himanshu Gupta, IAS and Dr. Kishore Singh, former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education, engaged in a lively discussion on the topic “Tracing the 30 years of Unnikrishnan Judgement: The role played by NGOs, law students, legal aid societies, pro bono clubs and bureaucracy”. Through this Panel discussion and paper presentation, a wide academic and policy discussion on RTE and the RTE Act ensued. This not only made the event holistic, but also encouraged the students and the audience to think beyond the theoretical and look at the practical aspect of implementation of a policy.
The Committee published a report named “Breaking Barriers to Education: An In-Depth study of implementation of Section 12(1)(c) of the RTE Act across Indian states”, which consisted of the reports submitted by the students from various law colleges pan India and the report made for the state of Rajasthan by Committee-members themselves. The report was launched in the presence of all the panellists and students. Through this report, the Committee aimed to gauge the state-wise status of implementation of the RTE Act, the challenges faced by different states, the historical evolution of RTE in India, plausible solutions and recommendations.
The objectives of this project were to highlight the shortcomings of the Act, introduce its practical application to physical infrastructure in primary government schools and further, to provide an opportunity for academic engagement and discussion on RTE implementation among leading law institutes across India.