--Press release by the National Coalition on the Education Emergency (NCEE) dated January 29, 2022 An education emergency of unprecedented proportions has severely impacted hundreds of millions of children in India. Prolonged school closures have caused learning deprivation, student dropout, increased child labour, malnutrition, and early marriages that are compromising the future of our country. It is time to open schools and massively increase funding of public education with a clear focus...

-The New Indian Express Experts say intervention needed as cases of abuse rose in lockdown CHENNAI: With schools shut and children confined to their houses, activists are concerned about kids’ safety. This is because the number of child sexual harassment cases in Tamil Nadu increased during the previous lockdown. Though schools are closed, teachers should regularly interact with students and enquire about their well-being, these activists say. “The number of sexual harassment cases...

-Down to Earth Ganjam, known to be severely affected by Child marriages, is Odisha’s first district to be declared Child marriage free Odisha’s Ganjam district was declared Child marriage-free January 3, 2022, district collector Vijay Amruta Kulange said. “We decided to declare the district free of Child marriage after collecting detailed information about all weddings that took place in 2020 and 2021,” Kulange said at an event organised at the district headquarters. The district...

-Press release by National Coalition on the Education Emergency (NCEE) dated January 4, 2022 We note with concern, that governments are considering or planning school closure as Covid cases are on the rise. Delhi, Goa and Haryana governments have ordered school closure. Karnataka TAC has recommended a TPR of 2 percent to close schools and colleges. This will spell a disaster for children. Schools have recently opened after remaining mostly closed since...

-The Hindu Its fifth edition has encouraging news but addressing discriminatory social norms must remain top priority The health system in India has been facing unprecedented stress during the COVID-19 pandemic which includes the looming Omicron threat now on the horizon. Against this backdrop, the recently released fifth edition of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-5 brings some positive news. NFHS-5, which presents a bird’s eye view of the state of the...