On December 3, 2010, the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court, responding to public interest litigation (PIL) filed by advocate Vishwanath Chaturvedi, directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to conduct and complete an inquiry within six months, into the foodgrain scam in Gonda, Lucknow, Varanasi, Ballia, Lakhimpur and Sitapur districts. It also stated, that "It shall not be necessary for the CBI or state agencies to obtain sanction under the statutory provision with regard to present controversy where from initial stage, prima facie intentionally, deliberately and in a planned manner, the foodgrains were lifted from godowns for sale either in the open market or to smuggle outside UP or to other countries, " The bench also asked the Centre and Uttar Pradesh government, to consider appropriate amendments in the "Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. Though period under investigation is till 2007, the court also directed that "it should be open to the CBI and state agencies to proceed with investigation with regard to the scam not only up to 2007 but even beyond in case some link evidence/material is found with regard to continuance of diversion of foodgrain under various schemes of the state and Central governments." Since the Indian Constitution was completed in 1949, education has remained one of the priorities of the Indian government. The first education minister Maulana Azad founded a system of education which aimed to provide free education at the primary level. Primary education was made free and compulsory for children from 6-14, and child labour was banned. The government introduced incentives to education and disincentives for not receiving education – for instance, the provision of mid-day meals in schools were introduced. Many similar initiatives echoed, and the largest of such initiatives is Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, which actively promoted “Education for All”. In line with this, the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) aimed to increase their expenditure on education to 6% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from values fluctuating about 3% through their National Common Minimum Programme (NCMP) in 2004. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act was also imposed in 2009. Despite these initiatives, education continues to persist as an impediment to development. While many schools were built, they had poor infrastructure and inadequate facilities. Schools in the rural areas were especially affected. According to District Information System for Education (DISE) in India in 2009, only about 51.5% of all schools in India have boundary walls, 16.65% have computers and 39% have electricity. Of which, only 6.47% of primary schools and 33.4% of upper primary schools have computers, and only 27.7% of primary schools have electricity. Learning in poorly furnished schools was not conducive, resulting in poor quality education. Furthermore, the absence rates of teachers and students were high, while their retainment rates low. The incentives for going to school were not apparent, while punishment for absence was not enforced. Despite the government’s decree on compulsory education and the child labour ban, many children were still missing classes to go to work. The government did not interfere even when children missed school.
Posted on: Thu, 27 Jun 2013 04:22:24 +0000
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