NHRC For Centre & States To Act In Unison To Achieve Universal Education

Bhubaneswar: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has asked the Centre and states, including Odisha, as well as union territories to take appropriate initiatives to ensure education for all, both in digital and physical mode.

The Commission has also recommended that the governments must curb digital divide amongst the children of different sections of society.

The NHRC recently passed these recommendations after hearing a petition filed in September, 2020 by human rights activist and lawyer Radhakanta Tripathy from Odisha.

The petitioner had raised an issue concerning education of students during COVID-19 pandemic. He had alleged that no substantial steps were taken by the governments as corrective measures to address education deficit.

Acting on the petition, the Commission has taken several steps like issuing notice to the Centre and state/UT governments to address this issue. It had issued advisories to protect and promote the rights of children. It has also conducted two webinars on digital divide and issues and challenges of digital education.

The Education Ministry had later submitted an action taken report regarding digital education for children. Research division of the NHRC analysed this report and gave recommendations to the Centre and states/UTs to reduce the impact of learning loss and digital divide.

Some of these recommendations include door to door/App-based surveys to identify out of school children and mainstream out of school children by preparing special online courses. Children should get access to textbooks in both digital and physical form to elementary school children, the NHRC order said.

The Commission said that states/UTs should ensure that the guidelines formulated in the various advisories and the steps taken by the Centre must be implemented holistically to remove differences between classes in the society and impart quality education to the students across the country.

The NHRC said the states/UTs and the Centre should act in unison to achieve the goal of universal education across the society, which includes poor, under-privileged and down-trodden children, with a view to promote an enlightened society for the future.