Is the Right to Education Merely Theoretical?

Newsreel Asia Insight #78
Dec. 20, 2023

In Gujarat, a significant number of children from migrant worker families, particularly those involved in sharecropping, are not attending school, according to a report by IndiaSpend, which says this trend is prevalent among over 65,000 sharecropping families in the state, with an estimated 50,000 children migrating annually with their parents and remaining out of school for extended periods.

A study by the non-governmental organisation Centre for Labour Research and Action, cited by IndiaSpend, highlighted the schooling challenges for migrant children in Gujarat, a state bustling with economic activity.

Covering 1,476 migrant agricultural households in Saurashtra, a region comprising the southwestern part of Gujarat, the study found that 63% of 1,985 school-age children did not attend school in their destination areas. The dropout ratio in these districts exceeds 50%, with Amreli district recording around 87%. Additionally, only 44% of children were enrolled in schools at their native places, and a mere 6% under six years had access to Anganwadis.

Every year, thousands of people from the Bhil tribal belt, spanning the borders of Gujarat with Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh, migrate to various regions in Saurashtra for sharecropping work. These families, along with their children, reside for several months on farmlands located at the peripheries of villages.

Imagine this: As the sun peeks over the horizon in this region, young children are already at work, not in classrooms learning algebra or literature, but in fields and at home, shouldering responsibilities far beyond their years. This is the everyday reality for the children of the state’s migrant workers.

The survey identified distance from school and language barriers as primary reasons for non-enrollment. About 50% of children not attending school cited caregiving responsibilities. Parents also expressed concerns about the relevance of education in non-native languages for future employment.

Girls face additional challenges, with 22% unable to attend school due to household chores, compared to 6% of boys, according to the study, which says boys, however, showed a higher lack of interest in studies (24%) than girls (17%).

Sudhir Katiyar, Founder of the Centre for Labour Research and Action, pointed out that migrant children often remain invisible to local schools, which are responsible for their education under the Right to Education (RTE) Act. These children are not counted in out-of-school surveys and continue to be listed as enrolled in their home village schools. The lack of awareness about schemes like the Migration Card further complicates their enrollment at destination schools.

The RTE Act, enacted in 2009, addresses the education of migrant workers’ children aged six to 14. However, implementation challenges persist. For instance, a school for Oriya migrant children in Surat, under the government’s development programme Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan, lacked resources in Oriya, leading to more dropouts, IndiaSpend said.

Gujarat’s budget allocation for education is a concern. The state’s allocated budget of 364.35 billion rupees for general education for 2023-2024 is only 12.1% of its total expenditure and below the average allocation by all states, IndiaSpend pointed out. The budget for Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan, with provisions for migrant children, is just 12.47 billion rupees. Additionally, around 20,000 primary teacher positions remain vacant, particularly in tribal areas like Dahod and Banaskantha.

Despite these challenges, some initiatives have shown promise, according to IndiaSpend. For example, in Kutch, the non-profit group Agariya Heet Rakshak Manch, formed after the 2002 Gujarat earthquake, successfully advocated for bus services for children of salt workers.

Educationists and organisations advocate for a reliable database of migrant workers and their children, improved quality of education and collaborative initiatives between the state and civil society organisations. These measures are crucial for ensuring every child’s right to education and breaking the cycle of distress migration.