The world is distraught and is experiencing unforeseen hardship due to Covid-19. Everyone is holed up behind locked doors in fear of this direful virus. And rightly so, with no completely developed vaccine, the only action that can be taken in such situations is to follow the safety protocols and this is exactly what the Government did. Nationwide lockdowns were being imposed beginning in March 2020. Several rules and guidelines were imposed during the lockdown, the main and most important one being to stay indoors. Every person in the world was advised to stay indoors and not to venture outside unless it was a definite necessity. This naturally, affected everyone’s life adversely. The whole world needed to adapt and learn to accept the new normal. Employees had to work from home and students had to learn from home.
Colleges and schools had to quickly adapt to moving classes online. While changing the classes to an online platform was successful, a dire pitfall of this unprecedented situation were the students who could not afford to adapt to this change. Cases of suicides started cropping up, as helpless students all over the country took their own lives because of their inability to afford devices such as smartphones and laptops which were needed to attend online classes. Students who were at the top of their classes while attending school were left stranded because of this. How can the right to education be guaranteed for those who are unable to afford these expensive devices and have no internet access?
‘The Right to Education’ is a fundamental right of empowerment.
Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights clearly stipulates that ‘everyone has the right to education.’ It states that education shall be free at least in the fundamental stages and calls or education to be compulsory. Under this, education should be made equally accessible to all based on merit.
This right is an empowering right that facilitates the upliftment of all people. Especially those who are economically and socially marginalized shall be able to uplift themselves using education.
Article 21 A of the Indian Constitution requires the State to provide free and compulsory education to all children from ages six to fourteen. This right is a fundamental right included in Part II of the Indian Constitution.
A landmark judgment concerning this, Mohini Jain v. State of Karnataka (1992 AIR 1858) decided that the right to education is a definite essence of the right to life and is directly interlinked with it.
And in the case of J.P. Unnikrishnan v. State of Andhra Pradesh (1993 AIR 2178), it was declared that a citizen has a right to call up the state and ask to provide the facilities of education.
Article 45 of the Indian Constitution also provides for free and compulsory education for children.
Article 24 of the Indian Constitution also facilitates this by ensuring that no child below the age of fourteen shall be employed to work in any factory or mine or engaged in any hazardous employment.
It is not uncommon in India for children to be sent to work, in families plagued with poverty. The main purpose of this Article is to safeguard children and to ensure that they have the opportunity to avail education without being forced into employment to become bread-winners at a very young age. This ensures that young minds are not forced to face the harsh realities of life and instead, have access to the education that would equip them with tools to ensure that they can handle these realities with a little ease.
Article 51A(k) of the Indian Constitution requires parents or guardians to provide children between the age of six and fourteen, with education opportunities.
Another legislation dealing with this is the Right to Education Act, enacted on the 4th of August, 2009. This Act has made several provisions to facilitate the education of every child between the ages of six and fourteen.
Although several provisions are ensuring the right of education which clearly states that the State must ensure that people have access to education, the current situation is not in accordance with this. A lot of states have not provided students with the necessary infrastructure to facilitate learning. It has been ensured that education is made available through tools such as Zoom and Google Meet which can be accessed in devices with internet access and also broadcasting lessons on the television and radio. But the unavailability of access to devices and internet connectivity that comes with remote learning is the main issue. It is important that students have sustainable access to education and learning especially in times of Covid-19. It is also necessary to involve those who are facing these problems and to invite suggestions to effectuate policies offering consistent access.
This Article Does Not Intend To Hurt The Sentiments Of Any Individual Community, Sect, Or Religion Etcetera. This Article Is Based Purely On The Authors Personal Views And Opinions In The Exercise Of The Fundamental Right Guaranteed Under Article 19(1)(A) And Other Related Laws Being Force In India, For The Time Being.
