Dalit and tribal children from across Madhya Pradesh joined a public hearing in Dewas district exposing major short comings in implementing government education policy in the state, and seeking a way forward.

Caste-based discrimination is rampant reported children and adults. “Villagers of dominant caste did not allow me to cook midday meals at the school. Also, Dalit children are made to sit separately during meal time,” revealed Meera, a 40-year-old Dalit woman from Bisakhedi village of Dewas district.

“When we raised our voice against this partial treatment, we were threatened and beaten badly by the teacher. Non-dalit students also refuse to sit with us,” said 13 year old Pooja, a Dalit student from the same school. She feels humiliated by her teacher and classmates. Pooja says she would rather stop having midday meals than bear daily insults.

The hearing Shiksha Panchayat, set up by ActionAid partner organisation Jansahas, was attended by 40 children and 50 civil society groups including several Dalit and tribal organisations and was chaired by Dr. Shanta Sinha, Chairperson of National Child Rights Commission.

Government schools in almost all blocks and villages of the state suffer from poor infrastructure and education, said the children, field workers and dalit parents at the event.

Token laws

With no scholarship, children of erstwhile manual scavengers who once cleaned up other people’s faeces with their bare hands for a living are finding it difficult to get education. “Indian government banned manual scavenging in 1993 but does it really want to ensure equality and end discrimination without providing proper education to our children?” asked 35 year old Kiran, a former manual scavenger and a community leader ActionAid supports.

Twenty one schools in Khalwa block of Khandwa district are without a single teacher, says Ganesh of Korku indigenous group. Ganesh belongs to Child Rights Protection Forum (CRPF), a Korku organisation that works on children’s issues. CRPF tried hard to convince government authorities including the block education officer to appoint new teachers but officials feign helplessness, he reported.

Newly appointed teachers refuse to join schools in remote areas, and without attractive incentives and facilities, the trend seems unlikely to change any time soon, says Ganesh.

No progress

An enduring and largely unnoticed challenge is that while children may get enrolled, schools are not able to retain them for long. According to a study conducted in seven dalit and tribal dominated districts of the state, as much as 35% of students in primary schools are not reaching middle school.

“Enrolment rate is increasing every year but since government schools are not functional, children are unable to pass exams. These children run the risk of dropping out,” said Avinash Jhade, state coordinator from Madhya Pradesh Shiksha Abhiyan, a network of civil society groups dedicated to right to education.

Child labour, migration of families for work, and discrimination against girls also keep children out of school.

Solutions

Children at the hearing felt emboldened to raise their voices against discrimination at schools. Many children suggested holding hearings with teachers to encourage them to teach without bias.

Participants at the hearing also recommended setting up of a district child rights commission for timely redressal of children’s grievances. Arvind Sadana of Eklavya, an NGO, suggested that parents and village council members should pay surprise visits at the school during mid day meals. “This would exercise a healthy pressure on the teacher and he would think twice before discriminating against Dalit children,” he said..

In a mini-breakthrough, the labour inspector, the additional district magistrate of Dewas district and officials from the state Women and Child Welfare department were also present at the hearing.