-The Times of India There was some grumbling when Indian taxpayers were told in 2004 that they would have to begin paying an education cess of 2%. But the move also inspired a lot of positivity, because of a widely-shared belief that upgrading education is the most effective thing our government can do to lift Indians into affluence. Although it took the Parliament another half decade to enact the Right to...

-The Hindu Opposing the provision of automatic promotions till Class VIII under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Act, 2009, a Parliamentary committee has asked the Ministry of Human Resource Development to "rethink" the policy as a student may not be motivated to work hard if promotion was guaranteed. Expressing concern over the quality of education under the RTE regime and the learning outcome, the panel has asked the Ministry...

-Outlook A media round table on Right To Education today expressed concern over the learning outcome of children, saying children are not learning the basics of literacy and numerology in classes. Learning assessments show that that for many of the children, who do remain in school, are not learning the basics of literacy and numeracy or the additional knowledge and skills necessary for their all-round development as specified under the Act, participants...

-The Hindu 'They quit because they are not learning anything in school' With eight million children never having stepped inside a school and 80 million dropping out without completing basic schooling, the United Nations Children's Fund has described the situation as a national emergency and called for equipping the government and civil society to implement the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009. "There has been progress in implementation of...

-Tehelka With 65 percent of the population below the age of 35, India boasts of an unparalleled generational dividend, but are we turning this potential into a disaster? Avalok Langer spots a ticking time bomb Nutrition & Health* 40% of children in India are malnourished 43% of children in the age group of 12-23 months receive full immunisation 48%+ of children are underweight 50%+ of all deaths under age 5 are related to malnutrition 45% of children...