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Indian Education System and Current Status of Education in India Sustainable

Development Goal 4: Quality Education

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Indian Education System and Current Status of
Education in India

Dr. Neeta Khandelwal

Department of Home Science Extension Education, ASPEE College of Home Science

Sardarkurshinagar Dantiwada Agriculture University
Email: neeta.udr@sdau.ac.in

Dr. Harish Gupta

Dept. of Civil Engineering, University College of Engineering,

Osmania University, Hyderabad 500 007
Email: harishgupta78@osmania.ac.in

Sustainable Development Goal 4: Quality Education

1
1. Introduction:

Educated mass of any country act as backbone of development. Education is considered

as one of the most powerful instruments for reducing poverty and inequality. Education provides
platform to enhance a country’s competitiveness in the global economy. Thereby, ensuring
access to quality education for all, in particular to the underprivileged population, is key to the
economic and social development. The world today has more knowledge than ever before, but
not everyone can benefit from it. Globally, countries have made major strides in increasing
access to education at all levels and increasing enrolment rates in schools, and basic literacy
skills have improved tremendously. Since 2000, there has been enormous progress in achieving
the target of universal primary education. The total enrolment rate in developing regions reached
91 percent in 2015, and the worldwide number of children out of school has dropped by almost
half. There has also been a dramatic increase in literacy rates, and many more girls are in school
than ever before. Among youth aged 15-24, the literacy rate improved globally between 1990
and 2016, increasing from 83.2% to 91.4%. Completion rates in primary school were 89.6% by
2016, and has witnessed a decline in recent years dipping from 90.7% in 2012. Few countries
have achieved gender equality at all levels of education.

Despite, all remarkable successes, currently one in five children, adolescents, and youth
are out of school, including 64 million children of primary school age, 61 million of lower
secondary school age and 138 million of upper secondary age. Progress has also faced tough
challenges in developing regions due to high levels of poverty, armed conflicts and other
emergencies. In Western Asia and North Africa, ongoing armed conflict has seen an increase in
the proportion of children out of school. This is a worrying trend. About half of all out-of-school
children of primary school age live in conflict-affected areas. Children from the poorest
households are four times more likely to be out of school than those of the richest households.
Disparities between rural and urban areas also remain high. While sub-Saharan Africa made the
greatest progress in primary school enrolment among all developing regions – from 52 percent in
1990, up to 78 percent in 2012 – large disparities still remain. As among the primary-aged
children who remain out of school, more than half of them are from sub-Saharan Africa. 103
million youth worldwide lack basic literacy skills, and more than 60 percent of them are women.
In developing countries, one in four girls is not in school.

2
 Another issue is the quality of education. 6 out of 10 children and adolescents are not
achieving a minimum level of proficiency in reading and math. Therefore, achieving inclusive
and quality education for all reaffirms the belief that education is one of the most powerful and
proven vehicles for sustainable development. A quality education is the foundation of sustainable
development, and therefore of the Sustainable Development Goals. As a policy intervention,
education is a force multiplier which enables self-reliance, boosts economic growth by
enhancing skills, and improves people’s lives by opening up opportunities for better livelihoods.

Quality education is one of 17 Global Goals that make up the 2030 Agenda for
Sustainable Development. An integrated approach is crucial for progress across the multiple
goals. The Sustainable Development targets for 2030 call for ensuring the completion of primary
and secondary education by all boys and girls, and guaranteeing equal access to opportunities for
access to quality technical and vocational education for everyone. Policy interventions will
require improving access and improving quality, as well addressing relevant obstacles which
include gender inequalities, food insecurity, and armed conflict. It also aims to eliminate gender
and wealth disparities with the aim of achieving universal access to a quality higher education.

2. Target of Goal 4

Goal 4 is designed to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote
lifelong learning opportunities for all. Quality education and lifelong learning opportunities for
all are central to ensuring a full and productive life to all individuals and to the realization of
sustainable development.

3
In order to achieve this goal by 2030, the following targets are set:

Targets to be achieved
4.1 By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality
primary and secondary education leading to relevant and Goal-4 effective learning
outcomes
4.2 By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood
development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary
education
4.3 By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality
technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university
4.4 By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant
skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and
entrepreneurship
4.5 By 2030, eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all
levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons
with disabilities, indigenous peoples and children in vulnerable situations
4.6 By 2030, ensure that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults, both men and
women, achieve literacy and numeracy
4.7 By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to
promote sustainable development, including, among others, through education for
sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality,
promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and
appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable
development
4.7a Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender
sensitive and provide safe, nonviolent, inclusive and effective learning
environments for all
4.7b By 2020, substantially expand globally the number of scholarships available to
developing countries, in particular least developed countries, small island
developing States and African countries, for enrolment in higher education,
including vocational training and information and communications technology,
technical, engineering and scientific programmes, in developed countries and
other developing countries
4.7c By 2030, substantially increase the supply of qualified teachers, including through
international cooperation for teacher training in developing countries, especially
least developed countries and small island developing states

4
3. Importance of Goal 4 in Indian Prospective

With current 1.37 billion population, India is the second most populated country in the
world after China. With a median age of 27.9 years in 2018, India is a young country. By 2020,
youth will make up 34% (>360 million) of the country’s population. However, by year 2015 only
74.8 % of Indian adults were literate, which lower in comparison to global literacy rate (86.2%).
Literacy rate is further lower among the rural (68%) population and adults with disabilities
(55%). Whopping 39% of children with disabilities are out of school. Despite having 100%
enrolment of girls in primary education, only 24.5% of them opt for higher education. This is not
surprising as gross enrolment in higher education in India is only 25%.

4. India and Goal 4

India has a rich heritage of learning and knowledge from Indus valley civilization. Since
ancient times education had a deeply impacted the growth and advancement of early Indian
society and overall development. Vedas and other sacred texts were the foundation of the ancient
Indian education system. The education system and objectives of education in an ancient period
were reformed as per the need of society and changing time. It means that the ancient education
system was inclusive and progressive. In the traditional education system education was
imparted in Gurukuls, Ashramas, Chitrashalas, and Universities. Takshaila University (present-
day Rawalpindi, Pakistan) has the reputation of being the first university of the world
(established in 7th century B.C.)1. The georaphical spread of these universities across the length
and breadth of Indian landmass suggest that ancient Indian given great importance to education.

The current English education system was introduced by Thomas Macaulay in 1835. As
a result, the traditional education Indian system was gradually withered away. Unaffordability
and English as the language of instruction kept the masses were deprived of the education under
British rule. Consequently, at the time offreedom from British rule, the Indian education scenario
was dismal. On the eve of independence the status of education was extremely poor. There were
huge disparities and imbalances in terms of education between urban and rural masses, between
men and women, between rich and poor. Baring few schools run by missionaries and charities,
preprimary education was non-existent. Enrollment in primary level was about 35%; whereas it
was just 4% in case of secondary-level schools. There were merely 400 colleges and 19

5
universities in the country. The budget for education was just 0.5% of the total revenue of the
government.

In order to take corrective measures, government of Independent India appointed

University Education Commission in 1948 under the chairmanship of Dr. S. Radha Krishnan.
Besides, several articles in Indian Constitution included various aspects of education and
promoted idea of compulsory education with minimum expenditure. Later on various five years
plan allotted a sizeable proportion of budget for supporting and improving the quality of
education. In the year 1968 the first Education Policy was accepted and a uniform education
structure was promoted throughout the country. Twenty years later National Literacy Mission
was launched to educate 80 million adults, particularly in the age group of 15-352. Universal
Primary Education was one of the primary objectives of Millennium Development Goals 3. The
target for Million Development Goal (MDG)-2 was to ensure that children universally –
including both boys and girls – will be able to complete a full course of primary education by
2015. The extent of improvement in education level after MDG-2 were to be evaluated based on
three main indicators (i) Net enrolment ratio in primary education, (ii) Proportion of pupils
starting grade 1 who reach grade 5 and (iii) Literacy rate of 15-24 years old. Subsequently, the
constitution was amended (Eighty-sixth Amendment Act, 2002) to provide free and compulsory
education of all children in the age group of six to fourteen years as a Fundamental Right.
Meanwhile another constitutional provision in form of “Right of Children to Free and
Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009”, was enforced. This is act represents the consequential
legislation envisaged under Article 21-A, means that every child has a right to full time
elementary education of satisfactory and equitable quality in a formal school which satisfies
certain essential norms and standards4.As a result, by 2013-14 the net enrolment ratio India in
primary education (both sexes) was 88.08%; whereas percentage of pupils starting grade 1 &
reaching grade 5 (both sexes; year 2011-12) were 86.05%. The literacy rate of 15-24 year old in
the year 2011 was 86.1.

In India, significant progress had been made in universalizing primary education, with
improvement in the enrolment and completion rates of girls in both primary and elementary

6
school. The net enrolment ratio in primary education for boys and girls was at 100%, while at the
national level, the youth literacy rate was 94% for males and 92% for females. The new national
Education Policy and Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4 share the goals of universal
quality education and lifelong learning. The flagship government scheme, Sarva Shiksha
Abhiyan, is aimed at achieving universal quality education for all Indians, and is complemented
in this effort by targeted schemes on nutritional support, higher education, and teacher training.

It implies that several sincere efforts were made at all levels for developing an efficient
and effective education system and to improve the enrollment ratios across the categories.
Consequently, different constitutional rights, laws, and policies provided under the Constitution
of India, various commissions and committees to popularized the education among Indian
citizens helped to fill the gap of educational disparities among the different sections of society
and provide maximum possibilities to get an education with minimum expenditures. It shows
India’s – world’s largest democracy – commitment to provide education to all the children
without any discrimination based on caste, sex and religion.

5. Interventions

Thus all these achievements over the periods made remarkable progress towards the goal
of education for all. Meanwhile, the Central Government of India planned and implemented
several programmes, schemes and policies to support the education sector. Some important Act,
schemes, and policies are discussed here. Note that many programme/ schemes which were
initiated well before 2016 are also discussed here as these programmes/ schemes are still
continuing.

5.1 National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education (Np-Nspe)5

The national programme of nutritional support to primary education (NP-NSPE), which

is popularly known as the Mid-day Meal scheme was launched as a centrally sponsored scheme
on 15th August 1995. The main objective of NP-NSPE is to give a boost to the universalization
of primary education by enhancing enrolment, retention, and attendance and simultaneously
improving nutritional levels among children. It is irrefutable fact that classroom hunger affects

7
adversely the learning ability of children. A hungry child is less likely to attend school regularly
and chronic hunger leads to malnutrition and other susceptible diseases. Therefore, it is
imperative need to address food security and education at the same time so the poor children
from disadvantaged section of the society can capable to combat hunger, poverty, and illiteracy.
The mid-day-meal programme is a multifaceted programme of the Government of India which
focuses on issues of food security, lack of nutrition and access to education on a nationwide
scale. The roots of the programme had a long history back to the pre-independence era when the
mid-day meal programme was introduced in 1925 for children of poor socio-economic status in
the Madras Municipal Corporation6. By the mid-1980s three States viz. Gujarat, Kerala and
Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Pondicherry had started the school lunch programme
with their own resources for children studying at the primary stage. On 28 November 2001, the
Supreme Court passed an interim order that provided for the conversion of eight food security
schemes into entitlements (i.e. rights) of the poor. Between 2002 & 2004, however, most Indian
states instituted universal midday meals in public primary schools. Table 1, summarizes in
chronological order of the launch of mid-day meal in different states.

5.1.1 Objectives of the scheme

NP-NSPE, 2006 seeks to address two of the most pressing problems for the majority of
children in India, namely, hunger and education by:

(i) Improving the nutritional status of children in classes I – V in Government, Local Body and
Government aided schools, and EGS and AIE centers.

(ii) Encouraging poor children, belonging to disadvantaged sections, to attend school more
regularly and help them concentrate on classroom activities, thereby increasing the enrolment,
retention and attendance rates.

(iii) Providing nutritional support to children of the primary stage in drought-affected areas
during summer vacation.

8
Table 1-Launch of the Mid-Day Meal Scheme across States

Sl. Name of Year of Glimpses

No. States launching of
MDM
1 Tamil Nadu 1923 Started in Madras City by Madras Municipal Corporation & extended to full
State in 1982.
2. West Bengal 1928 Started in Calcutta city by Keshav Academy of Calcutta as compulsory Mid-
day Tiffin on payment basis at the rate of four annas per child per month.
3. Maharashtra 1942 Started free mid-day meal in Bombay. It was launched in 1995-96 as a
centrally sponsored scheme.
4. Karnataka 1946 Started in Bangalore city to provide cooked rice and yoghurt. There was
provision of giving 3 kg of rice/wheat per month /per child who had 80% or
more attendance in 1995. Cooked meal was started in 7 north eastern districts
during 2002-03.
5. Uttar Pradesh 1953 It introduced a scheme on voluntary basis to give boiled gram, ground-nut,
puffed rice and seasonal fruits.
6. Kerala 1960 Scheme had been funded by CARE (Cooperate American Relief Everywhere)
under US Assistance during the period 1960-1983 (in a pilot manner).
7. Bihar 1995 Started with dry ration of 3 kg/per student/per month and started providing
cooked meal in 30 blocks of 10 districts in 2003-04
8. Andhra 1995 There was provision of giving 3 kg of rice/wheat per month per child with 80%
Pradesh or more attendance in school.
9. Madhya 1995 Initially dry rations or Dalia was provided.
Pradesh
10. Rajasthan 1995 Students of Government Primary schools were provided wheat at the rate of 3
kg/ per student /per month
11. Arunachal 1995 Initially only dry ration was provided in five districts of the state, extended to
Pradesh all schools since 2004.
12. Punjab 1995 Students of Government Primary schools were provided wheat at the rate of 3
kg per student/ per month and switched over to cooked meal in one block of
every district in 2002-03.
13. Haryana 1995 Initially implemented in 17 blocks of 6 districts & extended to 44 blocks where
female literacy rate was lower than the national level in 1996-97.
14. Himachal 1995 Initially dry ration was provided
Pradesh
15. Jammu & 1995 Initially dry ration was provided
Kashmir
16. Meghalaya 1995 Started with dry ration of 3 kg per student /per month.
17. Jharkhand 2003 It was taken up on a pilot basis in 3140 government primary schools in 19
districts initially.

Source: Planning Commission, Govt. of India, 2010,

5.1.2 Salient features of the scheme

• In 2001, MDMS became a cooked Mid-Day Meal Scheme under which every child in every
Government and Government-aided primary school was to be served a prepared Mid-Day

9
 Meal with a minimum content of 300 calories of energy and 8-12 gram protein per day for a
minimum of 200Days.

• The Scheme was further extended in 2002 to cover not only children studying in
Government, Government aided and local body schools, but also children studying in
Education Guarantee Scheme (EGS) and Alternative & Innovative Education (AIE) centers.

• In September 2004 the Scheme was revised to provide for Central Assistance for the supply
of free food grains (wheat/rice) @ 100 grams per child per School Day at Primary classes (I-
V) and 150 grams per child per school day at upper primary classes (VI-VIII). The scheme
also provides free cost of transportation of food grains and its cooking. Central assistance
was provided for the first time for management, monitoring, and evaluation of the scheme @
2% of the cost of food grains, transport subsidy, and cooking assistance.

• In July 2006 the Scheme was further revised to enhance the cooking cost& the nutritional
norm was revised to 450 Calories and 12 gram of protein.

• In order to facilitate construction of kitchen-cum-store and procurement of kitchen devices in

schools provision for Central assistance @ Rs. 60,000 per unit and @Rs. 5,000 per school in
a phased manner were made.

• In October 2007, the Scheme was extended to cover children of upper primary classes (i.e.
class VI to VIII) studying in 3,479 Educationally Backwards Blocks(EBBs) and the name of
the Scheme was changed from ‘National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary
Education’ to ‘National Programme of Mid-Day Meal in Schools’. The nutritional norm for
the upper-primary stage was fixed at 700 Calories and 20 grams of protein.

• The Scheme was further revised in April 2008 to extend the scheme to recognized as well as
unrecognized Madarsas / Maqtabs supported under SSA.

5.1.3 Contributions and Achievements of the Scheme

Findings of the evaluation studies by independent organizations in various states indicate

the following impacts.

10
• The Cooked Mid-Day Meal Program is the largest feeding programme ever which not only
addressing “classroom hunger” in the beneficiary schools. But helps to overcome “classroom
starvation”. As many poor children are come to school with empty stomach & from distant
places, and thus cannot concentrate on studies.

• The contribution of mid-day meals to food security and child nutrition seems to be
particularly crucial in tribal areas where hunger is endemic.

• Mid-Day meals have big effects on school participation, not just in terms of getting more
children enrolled in the registers but also in terms of regular pupil attendance on a daily basis.
Mid-day meal has brought a sharp increase in school enrolment and attendance rates across all
the states and more importantly narrowing the gender gaps in school attendance rates.

• There is also evidence to suggest that mid-day meals have an important social value and
foster equality. Cooked Mid-Day Meal is reported to have created a platform for children of all
social and economic backgrounds to take meals together, thereby facilitating achieving the
objective of social equity.

• School meal program also provides parents with a strong incentive to send children to school,
thereby encouraging enrolment and reducing absenteeism and dropout rates. It supports health,
nutrition, and education goals and consequently will have a multi-pronged impact on a nation’s
overall social and economic development.

• School feeding programme serves as a very effective mechanism for strengthening the
socialization process. It helps to break the caste and class barriers.

• Mid-day meal has also helped the poor families that, engulfed in poverty, hunger and
starvation striving hard to have one square meal a day, cannot even think of sending their
children to schools. The poor households such as those headed by widows or landless laborers
value that assurance of a free lunch every day for their children.

• This programme has created a very congenial atmosphere for education, healthy growth and
overall well-being of the poor and needy children.

• The gender gap in school participation tends to narrow, as the Mid-Day Meal Scheme helps
erode the barriers that prevent girls from going to school. Mid-Day Meal Scheme also provides a
useful source of employment for women and helps liberate working women from the burden of

11
cooking at home during the day. In these and other ways, women and girl children have a special
stake in the Mid-Day Meal Scheme.

• National Council of Educational Research & Training’s latest report states that Learning
Achievement of Students at the End of Class-V has inferred that children covered under mid-day
meal have higher achievement level than those who were not covered under it.

• The Scheme has created various good habits in children, such as washing one’s hands before
and after eating, the use of clean water, good hygiene etc.

Table 3-Achievements during the period 2005-06 to 2011-12

Components 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08* 2008-09* 2009-10* 2010-11* 2011-12*

10.35
Children covered (in Cr.) 11.94 10.68 11.37 11.19 11.36 10.46
up to 30.09.11
Food grain allocated (in
22.51 21.60 24.79 29.30 27.71 29.40 29.09
lakh MTs)
Budget allocation (in
3345.26 5348.00 6678.00 8000.00 7359.15 9440.00 10380.00
Cr.)
7697.24
Total Exp (in Cr.) 3186.33 5233.47 5835.44 6688.02 6937.79 9128.44
up to 29.12.11

During 2009-10, 8.41 cr in Primary and 3.36 cr Upper Primary children i.e a total of
11.77 cr children were estimated to be benefited from the MDM Scheme. During 2010-11, 11.36
Cr children i.e 7.97 Cr. Children in primary and 3.39 Cr. children in the upper primary had been
covered in 12.63 lakhs institutions. During2011-12 total coverage of children against enrollment
was 10.52 Crore (i.e. Primary-7.71 crore and upper primary 3.36 crore children). During 2012-
13, 10.68 Cr. children (Elementary level) had been covered by in12.12 lakh Schools. 10.45 Cr.
children were covered in 11.58 lakh Schools during 2013-14.

5.2 Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA)7

A higher level of knowledge and skills are essential in education in the present scenario.
With this regard, primary education is helpful for the overall development of children to the
best of their abilities: while secondary education provides the basis and perspectives to the
students about the education and their choice of a career in future.

12
 Following the recommendations of New Education Policy of 1986 and Programme of
Action, 1992 the Government of India initiated different schemes to support children of
secondary and higher secondary schools at different points in time. It has been observed that
during the ninth plan period there have been no major changes in the structure and
organization of the secondary and higher secondary school system. So the IEDSS (formerly
IEDC), Girls’ Hostel, Vocational Education and ICT@schools schemes were started with the
overall objective of providing accessible, and relevant secondary education of good quality in
India: RMSA was the most recent addition to these four existing schemes. It was initiated in
March 2009 by the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) for the objectives of
enhancing access to secondary education and improving its quality. The implementation of
the scheme started from 2009-10 to generate human capital and provide sufficient conditions
for accelerating growth and development and equity as also a quality of life for everyone in
India. The scheme involves multidimensional research, technical consulting, implementation
and funding support. Currently, in its fourth year of implementation, RMSA covers 50,000
government and local body secondary schools and additionally 30,000 aided secondary
schools.

5.2.1 Objectives of the scheme

 The scheme envisages achieving a gross enrolment ratio of 75% from 52.26% in 2005-06 for
classes IX-X within 5 years of its implementation, by providing a secondary school within
reasonable distance of any habitation.

 Improve the quality of education imparted at the secondary level by making all secondary
schools conform to prescribed norms.

 Remove gender, socio-economic and disability barriers.

 Provide universal access to secondary level education by 2017, i.e. by the end of the 12th Five
Year Plan

 Enhance and universalize retention by 2020

5.2.2 Important Equity Interventions provided in the scheme are:

 Additional class rooms

 Equity interventions
13
 Laboratories

 Libraries

 Art and crafts room

 Toilet blocks

 Drinking water provisions

 Residential Hostels for Teachers in remote areas

5.2.3 Important Quality interventions provided in the scheme are:

 Appointment of additional teachers to reduce PTR TO 30:1

 Focus on science, math and English education

 In-service training of teachers

 ICT enabled education

 Curriculum reforms &

 Teaching learning reforms

5.2.4 Participation of private sector

• There was increased participation of the private sector including non-governmental

organizations (NGOs). Currently, these private sectors manage around 51% of the
secondary schools and 58% of the higher secondary schools.

• Opportunities were provided for those children who were not able to enroll themselves
in formal education systems through national and state open schools by utilizing
contact-centers and multi-media packages.

• It highly emphasized on the content, process and the quality of education especially the
environmental education, science, mathematics and computer literacy with the financial
help from the central government.

• After the revised NPE policy, 1992, new initiatives like the revision of curriculum,
resource centers for value education and the National Centre for Computer-aided
Education etc. have been taken up.

14
 • The appeal lacks in the vocationalization of education due to the lack of manpower
demand and academic restraints etc. Hence, by 2000, only 10% of the students opt for
the vocational streams against 25%.

5.2.5 Four Major Heads of RMSA:

I. Quality improvement:

In school, there was the promotion of the science laboratories, environmental education,
promotion of yoga, as well as centrally sponsored schemes of population education project
international mathematics and science Olympiads. The state governments provide in-service
training for the teachers and provide infrastructure and research inputs.

II. Information communication technologies (ICT):

ICT comprises the centrally sponsored schemes like computer education and literacy in
schools (CLASS) and educational technology (ET) which familiarizes the student with
Information technology (IT). Due to the rise in IT demand in today's world, major importance is
given on it. Components of a merged scheme ICT in school include a) funding support towards
computer education plans; b) strengthening and reorientation of the staffs of SIETS - state
institutes of education and training; c) there is digitalization of SIETs audio and video cassettes
with the partnership of NGOs, and d) management of Internet-based education by SIETs.

III. Access and equity:

RMSA not only emphasizes on providing secondary education for the special focus
groups that include scheduled tribe and scheduled caste group, minorities girls and CWSN
children, but it also gives importance on removing the existing disparities in socio-economic and
gender background in the secondary level of education. They are termed as the vulnerable/
disadvantaged group. Certain strategies were implemented to provide free access towards
secondary education and they are given as the following steps:

1. Identification of the disadvantaged groups: For this purpose, educational indicators like
gross enrollment ratio (GER), net enrollment ratio (NER), drop-out rate, retention rate, gender
parity index (GPI), gender gap, etc. were analyzed.

15
2. Need assessment: This is the critical step to prepare for the equity plan where the factors
affecting the education of this group of children were evaluated with the involvement of the
community members, teachers, civil society, etc.

3. Strategizing for the addressing gaps: Since there are multiple interwoven factors that cause
the un-equitable condition in this scenario, the strategy was called to have a set of multi-
dimensional activities.

4. Project-based proposal: Development of a project-based strategy enables the RMSA to call

for an evidence-based and outcome-oriented strategy.

IV. Integrated education for disabled children (IEDC):

Inclusive education has been highlighted to bring about expansion in terms of

meeting/catering to the needs of the mentally and physically disadvantaged children. This
scheme continues to be a separate centrally sponsored scheme. It includes several components
for convergence with integrated child development services for early interventions, Sarva Siksha
Abhiyan (SSA) for the particular group at the elementary level, and special schools.

5.2.6 Current Status of Secondary Education -National trends (Based on SSE, SEMIS and
UDISE):

The target age group population of (14-18 years children) was 9.69 crore in 2011 as per
Census data (Registrar General of India). The estimated population of this age group in 2016 is
9.30 crore (MHRD, Department of Hr. Education, Statistical Bureau). The Gross Enrolment
Ratio for classes IX-XII in 2005-06 was 40.42%. The figure for classes IX - X was 52.19 %
whereas that for classes XI-XII it was 28.47%. As against the target GER of 100%, change in the
GER at secondary level since 2005-06is as follows:

Year GER-Total GER- Girls GER-Boys

2005-06 (SES) 52.19% 46.20% 57.60%
2009-10 (launch year 62.90% 58.70% 66.70%
of RMSA) (SES)
2012-13(UDISE) 67.35% 65.98% 68.60%
2013-14(UDISE) 76.64% 76.47% 76.80%

Overall enrolment in the country at secondary level has increased from 30675872 in
2009-10 to 37296683 (22%) in 2013-14. Increase has been observed in all States. The enrolment

16
has increased considerably in Jharkhand (103%), Sikkim (83%), Chhattisgarh (83%), Nagaland
(78%) and D&N Haveli (72%).

5.2.7 Achievement of RMSA since 2009-10 to 2014-15

a) Gender Parity Index (GPI): GPI at a national level in 2013-14 seems to be at the desired
level i.e. one. It has improved from 0.88 in 2009-10.
b) Net Enrolment Ratio (NER): in the year 2013-14 at the national level is 45.63 which have
increased from last year 41.93 (4 PP).
c) Dropout rate: Dropout rate for the class I to X at a national level has decreased from
61.62in 2005-06 to 49.20 in 2010-11 (52.70 in 2009-10). The Average Annual Dropout
Rate at Secondary level for the year 2012-13 is 14.54% at National level as per UDISE
data.
d) Transition rate: Transition from Elementary to Secondary and Secondary to Higher
Secondary schools at National level has been 91.95% and 68.91% respectively in the year
2013-14 as per UDISE.A transition from class VIII to Class IX for government schools
has increased to 80%in 2013-14 from 78% in 2012-13.
e) Accessibility to Secondary Education: With regard to access to secondary school, for
every 3 upper primary schools there is one secondary school. Overall the number of
habitations without access to secondary school has decreased to 400714 in 2013-14 from
420965 in 2011-12.
f) Up gradation of school: 304 schools were upgraded from middle to high.264
Headmasters & 1034 subject teachers were recruited in upgraded school under RMSA.
g) Strengthening of secondary schools: Secondary Schools were strengthened with
additional infrastructure. i.e., 1279 Additional Classrooms, 1299Science labs &
Science Lab equipment’s, 2780 Art & Craft Rooms, 2178libraries, 2198 Separate toilets
& Drinking water facility. Funds were disbursed to provide bilingual dictionaries, math
kit, remedial teaching in science & math subject for the students.
h) Repair grant: Major repair grant was given to 378 secondary schools. Minor repair grant
@ 25000 per school is given to all secondary schools. School grant @ 50000 per school
is given every year to all High and Senior Secondary Schools.

17
 i) Excursion, Quiz & fair: 1, 62,995students& 11 and 1 lac students of 10th class was taken
for excursion trip in 2010 & 2012. 1500 secondary teachers were covered under study
tour for teachers during 2011-12. Quiz competition & science fair for 9th& 10th class
students are organized every year at block, district& state level. Karate training is given
to all girl students of class IX and X every year.
j) Sports kits: have been provided to schools. Receive only terminals (ROTs) facility is also
provided to all government and high schools under RMSA.
k) Vocational education: Vocational education was started in schools with 6 trades i.e. IT,
Security, Beauty & wellness, Retail, Health care, and automobile.
l) Adrash& Model School: Government model senior secondary schools were opened at
Kendriya Vidhalaya pattern in backward areas where free of cost education is provided to
all students. These schools are of English medium and affiliated to the CBSE.

The RMSA framework also calls for the need to reform the examination system to move
away from rote learning, adolescent education programme, school-level counseling and
sensitization of the school head and teachers. The framework also emphasizes the importance of
learning assessment in the school and periodic state-level assessment to get an understanding of
student learning levels so that it can feed into research on where students make mistakes, thereby
influencing teacher support material and continuing professional development of teachers. In
short, the approach of the RMSA framework to quality is fairly comprehensive and covers all
dimensions – both inputs as well as outcomes8.

5.3 Sarva Shiksha Abiyaan (SSA)

Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) is a centrally sponsored scheme implemented by the

Government of India in partnership with State Governments. It is a flagship programme for
achievement of Universalization of Elementary Education (UEE) in a time bound manner, as
mandated by 86th amendment to the Constitution of India making free and compulsory
Education to the Children of 6-14 years age group, a Fundamental Right. The programme was
pioneered by former India Prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. As an intervention programme,
SSA has been operational since the 2000-2001. However, its roots go back to 1993-1994, when

18
 the District Primary Education Programme (DPEP) was launched, with the aim of achieving the
objective of universal primary education.

5.3.1 Objectives of Sarva Shiksha Abiyan (SSA):

ii) Provide "useful and relevant elementary education for all children in the 6 to 14 age group by
2010".
iii) All children should either be in school or an education center of an alternative school or an’
back to school ‘camp by 2003.
iv) All children of the appropriate age will fulfill five years of primary schooling by 2007
v) All children of the appropriate age will fulfill eight years of elementary schooling by 2010.
vi) Bridge all gender and social category gaps at primary stage by 2007 and at the elementary
level by 2010 through the active participation of the community.
vii) Universal access & retention in schools both primary and elementary by 2010and
viii) Focus on elementary education of satisfactory quality with emphasis on education for life.
The SSA especially focuses on girls (SCs and STs) and children of weaker section.

5.3.2 Intervention provided in the schemes is:

 opening of new schools and alternate schooling facilities,

 construction of schools and additional classrooms, toilets and drinking water,
 provisioning for teachers, regular teacher in service training and academic resource
support,
 free textbooks & uniforms and support for improving learning achievement levels /
outcome

5.3.3 Functional Areas of SSA

 Teachers Training

 Planning & Management

 Tribal Education

 Gender Education

 Civil Works

 Finance & Accounts

19
  Media & Documentation

 Management Information System

 Integrated Education for Disabled

5.3.4 Activities:

The following activities / duties are carried out by the council taking into consideration the
provisions contained in the frame work for implementation SSA9.

1. To provide school / Special Training.

2. To provide a room for every teacher for every grade / class, whichever is lower in
primary and upper primary.

3. Civil Works: Improvement of school facilities and BRC / CRC construction and
additional classroom at CRC level.

4. Maintenance and repair of school building (subject to specific norms)

5. School Grant

6. Teachers grant for TLM (subject to the limit by the norms)

7. Provision for Teacher Training

8. Provision for training of community leaders

9. Efforts to meet the special need of Disabled children

10. Provision for Research, Evaluation Supervision and Monitoring

11. To establish the Management structure.

12. Innovative activity for girl’s education, early child hood, care and education,
interventions for children belonging to SC/ST community.

13. To establish educational units like BRC at block level and CRC at cluster level and to
provide fund for their activeness and capacity building.

14. To provide fund for setting up Special Training centers, Bridge course, back-to- school
camps with a focus on mainstreaming out of school children into regular schools.

20
 15. Preparatory activities for micro-planning, household surveys, studies, community
mobilization, school-based activities, office equipment, training and orientation at all
levels etc.

16. To establish Model Cluster School under NPEGEL and provide fund for TLM, sports and
vocational training.

17. Provision for grant to Model Cluster School for meeting the expenditure on various
activities for promotion of girl’s education.

18. Provision for awards to school/ teacher at cluster level for the achievements in enrolment,
retention and learning out comes of girl’s students.

19. Training to teachers and peoples participants for gender sensitization

20. CAL - Computer Aided Learning

5.3.5 Recent initiatives under SSA:

1. Padhe Bharat Badhe Bharat10

Recent Initiatives under SSA Padhe Bharat-Badhe Bharat was launched in 2014 by the HRD
Minister of India, Mrs. Smriti Irani with a twin track approach focusing on language and math as
follows:

(1) Early reading & writing with comprehension ( ERWC):To improve language
development by creating an enduring interest in reading & writing with comprehension
and
(2) Early Mathematics (EM):To create natural and positive interest in mathematics related to
the physical and social world of children in class I & II.

Objectives:

 The programme aims at making children keen and self-sufficient readers and writers
 Enables them to possess comprehension skills that last for a lifetime.
 To associate the reading and writing with the experienceof joy &from a real- life
perspective

21
 To make sure that schools across the country become better at providing quality
education.
 To create the base that children need to successfully transition to higher classes and do
properly over there as well
2. Quality Education:
The world today has more knowledge than ever before, but not everyone can
benefit from it. Globally, countries have made major strides in increasing access to
education at all levels and increasing enrolment rates in schools, and basic literacy skills
have improved tremendously. Among youth aged 15-24, the literacy rate improved
globally between 1990 and 2016, increasing from 83.2% to 91.4%. Completion rates in
primary school were 89.6% by 2016, and has witnessed a decline in recent years dipping
from 90.7% in 2012. Few countries have achieved gender equality at all levels of
education. In addition, one in five children, adolescents, and youth are out of school,
including 64 million children of primary school age, 61 million of lower secondary
school age and 138 million of upper secondary age. Major progress has been made in
access to education, specifically at the primary school level, for both boys and girls. Still,
at least millions of children are missing out on pre-primary education.
A quality education is the foundation of sustainable development, and therefore of
the Sustainable Development Goals. As a policy intervention, education is a force
multiplier which enables self-reliance, boosts economic growth by enhancing skills, and
improves people’s lives by opening up opportunities for better livelihoods.
The Sustainable Development targets for 2030 call for ensuring the completion of
primary and secondary education by all boys and girls, and guaranteeing equal access to
opportunities for access to quality technical and vocational education for everyone.
Policy interventions will require improving access and improving quality, as well
addressing relevant obstacles which include gender inequalities, food insecurity, and
armed conflict.

Three means of implementation

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 I. Effective learning environments

Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and
provide safe, non-violent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all

II. Scholarships

By 2020, substantially expand globally the number of scholarships available to developing

countries, in particular least developed countries, small island developing States and African
countries, for enrolment in higher education, including vocational training and information and
communications technology, technical, engineering and scientific programs, in developed
countries and other developing countries

III. Teachers and educators

By 2030, substantially increase the supply of qualified teachers, including through international
cooperation for teacher training in developing countries, especially least developed countries and
Small Island developing States

6.1 Quality Education: Interventions in India

6.1.1 ShaGun portal

In January 2017 the government launched a dedicated web portal ShaGun for monitoring
the progress of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA). The portal was developed by the World Bank in
collaboration with Union Ministry of Human Resource Development. Its name has been derived
from the words Shala (means schools) and Gun (i.e. Gunvatta meaning Quality). ShaGun portal
was developed with a twin-track approach to monitoring schools under the SSA and also the
quality of education imparted by them. The portal has two parts:

It will capture and showcase innovations and progress in the Elementary Education sector
of India by continuous monitoring SSA. ShaGun will help in monitoring progress in the
implementation of SSA by assessing the performance of states/UTs on key parameters that will
help the Government to plan and deliver quality education to all. It will collect and report data to
enable the government and administrators to track the efficiency with which SSA funds are being
utilized and the results are been delivered.

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6.2.2 Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA)11

The success of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha
Abhiyan (RMSA) has laid a strong foundation for primary and secondary education in India.
However, the sphere of higher education has still has not seen any concerted effort for
improvement in access or quality. In the coming decades, India is set to reap the benefits of
demographic dividend with its huge working-age population. Therefore the Government
proposes a new centrally sponsored scheme for higher education which will be spread over two
plan periods (XII and XIII) and will focus on state higher educational institutions. The scheme
will be called Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA).

RUSA understands that sometimes the most important lessons of life are learned outside
the classroom. So whether it is upgrading libraries or computer laboratories, promoting
autonomous colleges or clubbing them to consolidate their strength and forming cluster
universities, this programme realizes that every institution holds the power to enrich lives
through top-class education. It will be based on key principles of performance-based funding,
incentivizing well-performing institutions and decision-making through clearly defined norms. A
management information system will be established to gather essential information from
institutions. RUSA will aim to provide greater autonomy to universities as well as colleges and
have a sharper focus on equity-based development, and improvement in teaching-learning
quality and research. It will be a new flagship scheme of the government that will pave the way
for far-reaching reforms at the state level.

6.2.2.1 Objectives of the Scheme12:

The objectives of RUSA would be to achieve the target of GER of 32% by the end of the XIII
Plan, which the central Government has set for itself. The government of India aims to improve
the quality of State Universities and colleges and enhance their existing capacities so that they
become dynamic, demand-driven, quality conscious, efficient and forward-looking and
responsive to rapid economic and technological developments occurring at the local, state,
national and international levels. The salient objectives of the scheme can be enumerated as
follows:

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  Improve the access, equity & quality overall quality of existing state institutions by
ensuring that all institutions conform to prescribed norms and standards and adopt
accreditation as a mandatory quality assurance framework.
 Usher transformative reforms in the state higher education system by creating a
facilitating institutional structure for planning and monitoring at the state level,
promoting autonomy in State Universities and improving governance in institutions.
 Ensure academic and examination reforms in higher educational institutions.
 Enable conversion of some of the universities into research universities at par with the
best in the world.
 Create opportunities for states to undertake reforms in the affiliation system in order to
ensure that the reforms and resource requirements of affiliated colleges are adequately
met.
 Ensure adequate availability of quality faculty in all higher educational institutions and
ensure capacity building at all levels of employment.
 Create an enabling atmosphere in the higher educational institutions to devote themselves
to research and innovations.
 Expand the institutional base by creating additional capacity in existing institutions and
establishing new institutions, in order to achieve enrolment targets.
 Correct regional imbalances in access to higher education by facilitating access to high-
quality institutions in urban & semi-urban areas, creating opportunities for students from
rural areas to get access to better quality institutions and setting up institutions in un-
served & underserved areas.

6.2.2.2 Strategic Focus of RUSA:

Strategic funding of state institutions must ensure that the issues of quality and access are
addressed in an equitable manner. This would entail encouraging the states to prepare a State
Higher Education Plan duly keeping the following aspects in mind:

o Spatial and regional planning after due mapping

o Programme and discipline planning
o Mandatory accreditation and quality improvement
o Reforms – governance and academic

25
 o Infrastructure saturation
o Review of the affiliation system
o Transparent and norm-based funding
o Outcome-based reimbursements
o Faculty planning
o Equity interventions
o Focus on research and innovation

6.2.2.3 Component of RUSA

RUSA is envisaged as a prime vehicle for strategic funding of state institutions so as to ensure
that issues of access, equity, and quality are addressed in an equitable manner with the state as a
composite unit of planning. The following are the primary components of RUSA that capture the
key action and funding areas that must be pursued for the fulfillment of the targets:

1. New Universities

2. Up gradation of existing autonomous colleges to Universities

3. Conversion of colleges to Cluster Universities

4. Infrastructure grants to Universities

5. New Model Colleges (General)

6. Up gradation of existing degree colleges to model colleges

7. New Colleges (Professional)

8. Infrastructure grants to colleges

9. Research, innovation and quality improvement

10. Equity initiatives

11. Faculty Recruitment Support

12. Faculty improvements

13. Research Universities

14. Vocationalization of Higher Education

26
15. Leadership Development of Educational Administrators

16. Institutional restructuring & reforms

17. Capacity building & preparation, Data collection & planning

18. Management Information System

6.2.3 Scheme for Providing Quality Education in Madrasas (SPQEM)13

National Policy on Education (NPE) has adopted the concept of the national system of
education, implying that up to a certain level all students irrespective of caste, creed, language or
sex have access to education of comparable quality. Many children of the educationally
backward Muslim minorities attend Maktabs/Madrasas/ Darul-Ulooms. In fact, in many remote
parts of the country, Madrasas have been the only educational institutions available for the
children of the Muslim community. These institutions provide, by and large, religious teaching
with very little participation in the national mainstream education system. In order to provide
them with access to education in modern subjects, the Government of India proposes a centrally
sponsored scheme for Providing Quality Education in Madrasas (SPQEM) to bring about
qualitative improvement in formal education through religious educational institutions like
Maktabs and Madrasas. The scheme started during the XIth Five Year Plan in 2009-10, is
currently in implementation in 18 states in the country. So far under SPQEM, over 21000
Madarsas spread over different states have been covered and given financial assistance to the
tune of Rs. 1138 crores.

The unique feature of this scheme is that it encourages linkage of Madrasas with National
Institute for Open Schooling (NIOS), as accredited centers to provide for certification of
academic levels, linkages with vocational education, improving the quality of education in
modern subjects, introduced teacher training, enhancement of teacher salaries, strengthening of
State Madrasa Boards for monitoring and raising awareness about education programmes for the
Muslim community.

6.2.3.1 Objectives:

27
 1. To encourage traditional institutions like Madrasas and Maktabs by giving financial
assistance to introduce science, mathematics, social studies, Hindi and English in their
curriculum.
2. To enable the children studying in Madarsas and Maktabs to achieve academic
proficiency for classes I to XII.
3. To provide opportunities to students of these institutions to acquire education comparable
to the National Education System especially for secondary and senior secondary levels.
This will enable children studying in these institutions to progress to higher levels of
learning and also open up better job opportunities for them.
4. To provide opportunities for vocational training to the children in
Madarsas/Maktabs/Dar-ul-Uloom aged above 14 years to enhance their job opportunities
in the market.
5. To strengthen State Madrasa Boards opting for assistance, by enabling them to monitor
the Madrasa modernization programs me and enhance awareness about education among
the Muslim community. iv. To provide in-service training of teachers appointed under the
scheme, for teaching modern subjects of science, mathematics, social studies, Hindi and
English, to improve their pedagogical skills and quality of teaching.

6.2.3.2 Component of SPQEM scheme:

SPQEM is a demand- driven scheme. The scheme provides for extending support and
capacity building of madrasas to teach modern subjects by providing for the following:

 salary of teachers, strengthening of libraries and book banks, providing teaching- learning
materials (TLMs) and other essential pedagogical equipment for teaching modern
subjects at the primary/middle/secondary and senior secondary levels.
 Financial assistance is also provided for the establishment of Science/Computer
Labs/workshops in Madrasas at the Secondary/Senior Secondary levels followed by an
annual grant for maintenance/ purchase of consumables.
 Besides direct financial assistance to the Madrasas, there is a provision in the scheme for
in-service training for teachers as well as linkages with the NIOS and other institutes
offering vocational courses

6.2.3.3 Salient Features of SPQEM scheme:

28
 • To strengthen capacities in Madrasas for the teaching of the formal curriculum subjects
like Science, Mathematics, Language, Social Studies etc. through enhanced payment of
teacher honorarium.
• Training of such teachers every two years in new pedagogical practices.
• Providing Science labs, Computer labs with annual maintenance costs in the secondary
and higher secondary stage madrasas.
• Provision of Science/Mathematics kits in primary/upper primary level madrassas.
• Strengthening of libraries/book banks and providing teaching-learning materials at all
levels of madrasas.
• The unique feature of this modified scheme is that it encourages linkage of Madrasas
with National Institute for Open Schooling (NIOS), as accredited centers for providing
formal education, which will enable children studying in such Madrasas to get
certification for class 5, 8, 10 and 12. This will enable them to transit to higher studies
and also ensure that quality standards akin to the national education system. Registration
& examination fees to the NIOS will be covered under this scheme as also the teaching-
learning materials to be used.
• The NIOS linkage will be extended under this scheme for Vocational Education at the
secondary and higher secondary stage of Madrasas.
• For the monitoring and popularization of the scheme, it will fund State Madrasa Boards.
GoI will itself run periodic evaluations, the first within two years.
6.2.4 Umbrella Scheme of Education for SC Children14:

Scheduled castes are those castes/races in the country that suffer from extreme social,
educational and economic backwardness and need special consideration for safeguarding their
interests and for their accelerated socio-economic development. The Constitution of India has
prescribed protection and safeguards for the Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs)
and other weaker sections with the object of promoting their educational and economic interests
and removing social disabilities. The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is the nodal
Ministry to oversee the interests of the Scheduled Castes. The Scheduled Castes Development
(SCD) Bureau of the Ministry aims to promote the welfare of Scheduled Castes through their
educational, economic and social empowerment. Efforts and initiatives were taken by State

29
Governments and Central Ministries for protecting and promoting the interests of Scheduled
Castes in higher education. In this framework, various scholarships are provided to the students
belonging to the Scheduled Castes (SCs) to ensure that education is not denied due to the poor
financial condition of their families. The umbrella scheme comprises various scholarships which
broadly are classified into the following three types15:

1. Pre-Matric Scholarships: The objective of the pre-matric Scheme is to support the

parents of SC children for educating their wards, so that the incidence of drop outs
especially in the transition from the elementary to the secondary stage is minimized and
 To improve participation of SC children in classes IX and X of the pre-matric stage,
so that they perform better and have a better chance of progressing to the post-matric
stage of education.
 The Scheme will be available for studies in India only and will be awarded by the
Government of the State/Union Territory to which the applicant belongs i.e. where he
is domiciled.
2. Post Matric Scholarship for Scheduled Caste Students (PMS-SC): The Scheme is the
single largest intervention by Government of India for educational empowerment of
scheduled caste students. This is a centrally sponsored scheme. 100% central assistance is
released to State Governments/UTs for expenditure incurred by them under the scheme
over and above their respective committed liability. The Scheme provides financial
assistance to the Scheduled Caste students studying at post matriculation or post-
secondary stage to enable them to complete their education. These scholarships are
available for studies in India only and are awarded by the government of the State/Union
Territory to which the applicant actually belongs i.e. permanently settled.
3. Scholarships for obtaining Higher Education and Coaching Scheme: These include:
i. Top Class Education for Scheduled Caste Students : This is the centrally
sponsored scheme was approved in 2007 and was subsequently revised in
January, 2012 and June 2016. The scheme will operate in all institutions notified
by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment
The objective of the Scheme is to promote qualitative education amongst students
belonging to Scheduled Castes, by providing full financial support for pursuing

30
 studies beyond 12th class, in notified institutes of excellence like IITs, NITs,
IIMs, reputed Medical/Law and other institutions. Scholarship is awarded to the
eligible SC students on securing admission in any of the institutions notified by
the Ministry to meet the requirement for full tuition fee, no-refundable fee& other
accessories.
ii. National Fellowship: Government of India had launched a Central Sector scheme
namely, Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship during the financial year 2005-06 to
increase opportunities to Scheduled Castes for pursuing higher education leading
to degrees such as M.Phil. and Ph.D. The scheme has been revised with effect
from 1.4.2010. The scheme caters the requirements of the Scheduled Caste
students for pursuing research degree in universities, research institutions and
scientific institutions. This will not only enable them to be eligible for
employment to the posts of Lecturers lying vacant in various colleges and
universities but will equip them to effectively take advantage of the growing
opportunities at the national and international level in the context of the new
economic order.

The scheme caters total number of 2000 Fellowships (Junior Research Fellows)
per year to Scheduled Caste students. The scheme covers all
universities/institutions recognized by the University Grants Commission (UGC)
and is implemented by the UGC itself on the pattern of the scheme of UGC
Fellowships being awarded to research students pursuing M. Phil. and Ph.D.

iii. National Overseas Scholarship: The Scheme provides assistance to students

belonging to SCs, de-notified, nomadic, semi-nomadic tribes etc. for pursuing
higher studies of Master level courses and PhD programmes abroad in following
specified field.
1. Engineering & Management
2. Pure Science& applied science
3. Agriculture science & Medicine
4. Commerce, accounting & Finance and
5. Humanities & social science

31
 iv. Free Coaching for SC and OBC Students: The Scheme of Upgradation of Merit of
SC Students was started in 1987-88 by the Ministry of Human Resource
Development (Department of Education) and was later transferred to Ministry of
Welfare during 1993-94.The objective of the Scheme is to provide coaching of
good quality for economically disadvantaged SC and OBC candidates to enable
them to appear in competitive examinations and succeed in obtaining an
appropriate job in Public/Private sector.

The Scheme provides central assistance to institutions/centres run by the

Central/State Governments/UT Administrations, Central/ State Universities,
PSUs, Registered Private Institutions, NGOs, etc. Coaching is provided for Group
'A' & 'B' examinations conducted by the UPSC, SSC, various Railway
Recruitment Boards and State PSCs; Officers’ Grade examinations conducted by
Banks, Insurance Companies and PSUs; and Premier Entrance examinations for
admission in Engineering, Medical and Professional .

Therefore various lucrative policies, programme, and schemes implemented by

government time to time for addressing the issues like total enrolment rate, up gradation of
school education with no discrimination, school infrastructure, teacher quality & training, filling
vacancies etc. though bolder efforts are required to make even greater strides for achieving
universal education goals. It is in dubious fact that education for all in the present scenario is
increasing at an alarming rate in India. In 2014, 64.7% rural population & 79.5 % urban populace
were literate. With the improvement in the number of schools, facilities in schools and
enrolment, the annual dropout rate at primary level has come down by 1.28 percentage point
(from 5.62% in 2011-12 to 4.34% in 2013-14) for all category students. At this level, the
Dropout rate for boys and girls decreased by 1.36 (from 5.89% to 4.53%) and 1.2% (from 5.34%
to 4.14%) percentage point respectively during this period16.

However, even as we consider the above remarkable achievements, we need now to turn
our attention to improving quality education in schools, especially in rural areas. To asses, area-
wise learning outcomes in four subjects viz. English, Mathematics, Science and Social Science
result of the National Achievement Survey (NAS- 2015) revealed that in all subjects, Urban

32
Students outperform Rural Students by a large margin. The reason could be either unaffordability
or inaccessibility of schools in their geographic locations. Thus inequality often amplifies the gap
in quality and hence productivity. Annual Status of Education Report of 2017 shows that the
number of students in elementary school has increased over the years but lacking foundational
skills. It was assessed that about 25 percent of students in the age group of 14-18 years could not
read basic text fluently in their own language, and more than half faced challenges in performing
basic arithmetic. Hence, in no way, this existing education system can be called qualitative &
proficient. So today there is a need for one more framework which promotes long- term approach
to addressing a global challenge in a sustainable way. That evolves the concept of Sustainable
Development Goals (SDG). SDG is the collection of 17 global goals set by the United Nations
General Assembly in 2015 has a long -term agenda and 169 targets for next 15 years to resolve
the social, economic and environmental problem throughout the world. The 17 goals set out
global actions for people and the planet, from gender equality to sustainable cities to peace and
justice. And out of their fourth goals is quality education.

7.1 SDG-4 Quality Education: Current Status of India

The new education agenda, also known as “Education 2030”, is fully captured in
Sustainable Development Goal 4 (Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote
lifelong learning opportunities for all) and its corresponding targets. The goal is split into
apparent three parts, making efforts for inclusive education through increased access to it is one
part. Maintaining the quality of education and promoting lifelong learning from the rest two
parts. It also aims to provide equal access to affordable vocational training, to eliminate gender
and wealth disparities, and achieve universal access to a quality higher education as well
addressing relevant obstacles which include gender inequalities, food insecurity, and armed
conflict. Everyone has the right not only to receive an education but also to receive an education
of high quality. Quality in education pertains to the relevance of what is taught and learned - to
how well it fits the present and future needs of the particular learners in question, given their
particular circumstances and prospects17.

Everyone wants to improve the quality of education. It is relevant to ask why quality has
become the focus of so many educational discussions. There may be at least three reasons behind

33
this: - Education over the last decades has developed towards lower quality. - It is an expression
of increased concern about education, the quality of education and the best way of spending
money in education. - The increased focus on education is a part of a process of restructuring the
public sector, cutting public spending and introducing private solutions18.A quality education
system must manage to provide all children and young people with a comprehensive education
and with appropriate preparation for working life, life in society and private life. Thus SDG 4
2030 is

 more comprehensive: Expanded access to all levels of education

 at least 12 years of free, publicly funded, quality primary and secondary
education, higher education, TVET.
 more outcome/skills oriented
 renewed focus on effective acquisition of foundational skills
 new focus on relevance of learning for decent work
 new focus on relevance of learning for social and civic life
 more integrated with other goals (e.g. SDG 8.7)
 needs more resources
 universally-relevant to all societies both global North and global South
 rights-based and a public good

In India, significant progress had been made in universalizing primary education, with
improvement in the enrolment and completion rates of girls in both primary and elementary
school. The net enrolment ratio in primary education for boys and girls was at 100%, while at the
national level, the youth literacy rate was 94% for males and 92% for females. The new National
Education Policy and Sustainable Development Goal 4 share the goals of universal quality
education and lifelong learning. The flagship government scheme, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, is
aimed at achieving universal quality education for all Indians, and is complemented in this effort
by targeted schemes on nutritional support, higher education, and teacher training.

7.2 Focus of SDG Goal 4 - Ensure Quality, Access, Equity and Inclusion (QAEI)

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 All the seventeen SDGs like eradication of poverty, zero hunger, health, education, and
clean energy etc. are interdependent with each other so need to be implemented in an integrated
manner, with its weight on quality, access, equity and inclusion at all levels of formal education.
Inclusion and quality education for all reiterates the belief that education is one of the most
dominant and proven vehicles for sustainable development. To achieve all targets of SDGs 4
within a 15-year time frame, QAEI offers a window of opportunity to be the prerequisites for
quality and accessibility of education for India’s young population. So they could attain at least a
minimum proficiency level in reading and maths and concurrently be a productive and skilled
workforce for resurgent India. However, a series of programmes and policies initiated by India,
focusing on quality and inclusiveness are already in place prior to the 10 adoptions of SDGs.
India follows four stages of school education programme, in which pre-primary education is not
a part of the formal education structure. An initiative like the Right of Children to Free and
Compulsory Education (RTE) provides for inclusive elementary education for all and reserved
25 percent quotas in private schools for children from economically weaker sections (EWS) of
the society. Education for inclusion specifically intended to give equal opportunities for all
sections of society that includes gender, SC/ST, minorities, migrants, out of school children and
children with special needs, require strong government intervention.

The RTE Act provides for the:

Right of children to free and compulsory education till completion of elementary

education in a neighborhood school. It clarifies that ‘compulsory education’ means an obligation
of the appropriate government to provide free elementary education and ensure compulsory
admission, attendance and completion of elementary education to every child in the six to
fourteen age group. ‘Free’ means that no child shall be liable to pay any kind of fee or charges or
expenses which may prevent him or her from pursuing and completing elementary education19.

• It makes provisions for a non-admitted child to be admitted to an age-appropriate class.

• It specifies the duties and responsibilities of appropriate Governments, local authority,
and parents in providing free and compulsory education, and sharing of financial and
other responsibilities between the Central and State Governments.

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 • It lays down the norms and standards relating inter alia to Pupil-Teacher Ratios (PTRs),
buildings and infrastructure, school-working days, teacher-working hours.
• It provides for rational deployment of teachers by ensuring that the specified pupil-
teacher ratio is maintained for each school, rather than just as an average for the State or
District or Block, thus ensuring that there is no urban-rural imbalance in teacher postings.
It also provides for prohibition of deployment of teachers for non-educational work,
other than decennial census, elections to the local authority, state legislatures and
parliament, and disaster relief.
• It provides for the appointment of appropriately trained teachers, i.e. teachers with the
requisite entry and academic qualifications.
• It prohibits (a) physical punishment and mental harassment; (b) screening procedures for
admission of children; (c) capitation fee; (d) private tuition by teachers and (e) running of
schools without recognition,
• It provides for the development of curriculum in consonance with the values enshrined in
the Constitution, and which would ensure the all-round development of the child,
building on the child’s knowledge, potentiality, and talent and making the child free of
fear, trauma, and anxiety through a system of child-friendly and child-centered learning

7.2.1 Progress of Goal 4 in 2016

 Despite progress, the world failed to meet the Millennium Development Goal of achieving
universal primary education by 2015. In 2013, the latest year for which data are available, 59
million children of primary-school age were out of school. Estimates show that, among those
59 million children, 1 in 5 of those children had dropped out and recent trends suggest that 2
in 5 of out-of-school children will never set foot in a classroom. The Sustainable
Development Goals clearly recognize that this gap must be closed, even as the international
community more explicitly addresses the challenges of quality and equity.

 Measuring learning achievement, starting in the early grades, will help to identify where
schools are failing to meet their commitments to children and to formulate appropriate
remedial action. For example, data for 2013 from 15 Latin American countries show that in
six countries, fewer than 50 per cent of third graders had a minimum level of proficiency in
mathematics; in three countries, fewer than half were proficient in reading.

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 At the end of primary school, children should be able to read and write and to understand and
use basic concepts in mathematics. However, in 2014, between 40 per cent and 90 per cent of
children failed to achieve even minimum levels of proficiency in reading, in 10 African
countries, and in nine of those countries, between 40 per cent and 90 per cent of children
failed to achieve minimum levels of proficiency in mathematics.

 The end of lower secondary education often coincides with the end of compulsory education.
By this stage, young people should be able to master subject-related knowledge and skills and
possess personal and social skills. Data from 38 countries in the developed regions show that,
in the majority of those countries, at least 75 per cent of young people achieved at least a
minimum proficiency in reading and/or mathematics; the same was true for only 5 out of 22
countries, in developing regions, for which data were available.

 Completion rates for both primary and lower secondary education has been rising steadily
since 2000. Completion rates for primary education in both developed and developing regions
exceeded 90 per cent in 2013. At the lower secondary level, the gap between developed and
developing regions has narrowed substantially, but still stood at nearly 20 percentage points
in 2013 (91 per cent for developed regions and 72 per cent for developing regions).

 Quality early education provides children with basic cognitive and language skills and fosters
emotional development. In the majority of the 58 countries with available data for the period
2009-2015, more than half of children between the ages of 3 and 4 were developmentally on
track in at least three of the following domains: literacy, numeracy, physical development,
social-emotional development and learning.

 Goal 4 strongly supports the reduction of persistent disparities. Worldwide, in 2013, two
thirds of the 757 million adults (aged 15 and over) who were unable to read and write were
women. Globally, in 2013, 1 in 10 girls were out of school, compared to 1 in 12 boys.
Children from the poorest 20 per cent of households are nearly four times more likely to be
out of school than their richest peers. Out-of-school rates are also higher in rural areas and
among children from households headed by someone with less than a primary education.

 To fulfil the promise of universal primary and secondary education, new primary school
teachers are needed, with current estimates showing a need for nearly 26 million of them by
2030. Africa faces the greatest challenges in this regard, with nearly 7 in 10 countries

37
 experiencing acute shortages of trained primary school teachers. In 2013, only 71 per cent of
teachers in sub-Saharan Africa and 84 per cent in Northern Africa were trained in accordance
with national standards.

 Official development assistance for educational scholarships amounted to around $1.1 billion
annually from 2011 to 2013. It totalled $1.2 billion in 2014, with Australia, France and Japan
being the largest contributors.

7.2.2 Progress of Goal 4 in 2017

Achieving inclusive and equitable quality education for all will require increasing efforts,
especially in sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia and for vulnerable populations, including
persons with disabilities, indigenous people, refugee children and poor children in rural areas.

 In 2014, about 2 in 3 children worldwide participated in pre-primary or primary

education in the year prior to official entry age for primary school. However, in the least
developed countries, the ratio was only 4 in 10.

 Despite considerable gains in education enrolment over the past 15 years, worldwide, the
adjusted net enrolment rates were 91 per cent for primary education, 84 per cent for lower
secondary education and 63 per cent for upper secondary education in 2014. About 263
million children and youth were out of school, including 61 million children of primary
school age. Sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia account for over 70 per cent of the
global out-ofschool population in primary and secondary education.

 Even though more children than ever are going to school, many do not acquire basic
skills in reading and mathematics. Recent learning assessment studies show that in 9 of
24 sub-Saharan African countries and 6 of 15 Latin American countries with data, fewer
than half of the students at the end of primary education had attained minimum
proficiency levels in mathematics. In 6 of 24 sub-Saharan African countries with data,
fewer than half of the students who finished their primary schooling had attained
minimum proficiency levels in reading.

 Equity issues constitute a major challenge in education according to a recent assessment.

In all countries with data, children from the richest 20 per cent of households achieved
greater proficiency in reading at the end of their primary and lower secondary education

38
 than children from the poorest 20 per cent of households. In most countries with data,
urban children scored higher in reading than rural children.

 The lack of trained teachers and the poor condition of schools in many parts of the world
are jeopardizing prospects for quality education for all. Sub -Saharan Africa has a
relatively low percentage of trained teachers in pre -primary, primary and secondary
education (44 per cent, 74 per cent and 55 per cent, respectively). Moreover, the majority
of schools in the region do not have access to electricity or potable water.

 On the basis of data from 65 developing countries, the average percentage of schools
with access to computers and the Internet for teaching purposes is above 60 per cent in
both primary and secondary education. However, the share is less than 40 per cent in
more than half of sub-Saharan countries with data.

 Official development assistance (ODA) for scholarships amounted to $1 billion in 2015,

a decrease from $1.2 billion in 2014. Australia, France and the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland were the largest contributors.

7.2.3 Progress of Goal 4 in 201820

More than half of children and adolescents worldwide are not meeting minimum proficiency
standards in reading and mathematics. Refocused efforts are needed to improve the quality of
education. Disparities in education along the lines of gender, urban-rural location and other
dimensions still run deep, and more investments in education infrastructure are required,
particularly in LDCs.

 At the global level, the participation rate in early childhood and primary education was 70 per
cent in 2016, up from 63 per cent in 2010. The lowest rates are found in sub-Saharan Africa
(41 per cent) and Northern Africa and Western Asia (52 per cent).

 An estimated 617 million children and adolescents of primary and lower secondary school
age worldwide—58 per cent of that age group—are not achieving minimum proficiency in
reading and mathematics.

 In 2016, an estimated 85 per cent of primary school teachers worldwide were trained; the
proportion was only 71 per cent for Southern Asia and 61 per cent for sub-Saharan Africa

39
 In 2016, only 34 per cent of primary schools in LDCs had electricity and less than 40 per
cent were equipped with basic hand washing facilities

 Government is serious about improving the quality in teaching in higher education. In this
regard, University Grants Commission (UGC) and All India Council for Technical Education
(AICTE) have taken various initiatives. Some of these initiatives are as under21:

(i) Diksha- It is a platform for teachers which enables capacity building of all categories of
teachers. It helps over 50 lakh teachers in improving the quality of education. Teachers upload
their own material on the portal, which also offer online courses, allow sharing of best content,
monitor progress and introduce energized text books with QR Code.

(ii) Technical Education Quality Improvement Programme (TEQUIP)- This is a quality

improvement program in technical education. In phase III, hill states of J&K, Himachal and
Uttarakhand, 8 North-eastern States, Andaman Nicobar, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya
Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha, Jharkhand and Assam has got Rs.2,600 crore. This ensures bridging the
regional gaps in technical education. 1200 IIT and NIT graduates have opted for 3 years teaching
in educationally backward regions. They have resumed their duties in 53 government
engineering colleges where faculty vacancies were large. Thus 1,00,000 students get quality
education which they were deprived off till recently.

(iii) Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN) – Under GIAN, 700 professors from 58
countries have so far conducted about 1120 courses in specialized topics for students in Indian
Higher Educational institutions. More than 40,000 students and associated Indian Faculty has
benefited from this international teaching exposure.

(iv) Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya National Mission for Teachers Training (PMMMNMTT)
– Under this scheme in-service training programs for more than 1,00,000 college and university
teachers have been organized. Newly appointed teachers undergo six months pedagogical
training, so they can make good rapport with students and the quality improves.

40
(v) INTER UNIVERSITY CENTRES (IUCS): To improve the standards of higher education
and research, the UGC establishes Inter-University Centres for Teachers Education within the
university system under Clause 12(ccc) of the UGC Act.

 Annual Refresher Programme in Teaching (ARPIT) is a 40 hours programme with 20 hours

of video content offered in a highly flexible format which can be done at one’s own pace and
time. The programme has built-in assessment exercises and activities as part of the academic
progression in the course. At the end of the course, there is a provision for terminal
assessment which can be either online or written examination. The course offered under the
ARPIT programme is treated as equivalent to one Refresher Course for the purposes of
Career Advancement. This helps in assessment of teachers.

 AICTE has issued All India Council for Technical Education (Career Advancement Scheme
for the Teachers and other Academic Staff in Technical Institutions) (Degree) Regulations,
2012. Each faculty member submits performance based appraisal system (PBAS) in a
performa as evolved by the concerned institution/ University duly supported by all
credentials as per the Academic Performance Indicator (API) guidelines set out in these
regulations.

 MHRD launched so many new schemes in Higher Education Department to boost research &
Innovation culture in the country. It is for the first time in the country where any government
is emphasizing so much attention on research and innovation. MHRD has given graded
autonomy to selected Higher Educational Institutions to promote research and innovation in
their campuses so that they can entre in global institutions ranking. Some new important
schemes/Initiatives of MHRD like IMPRESS, Study in India, SPARC, STARS, NTA, NDL,
HEFA, LEAP, ARPIT and Innovation Cell etc. are the game changer in the field of education
in the country22.

7.2.4 Progress of Goal 4 in 2019

 As education is in the Concurrent List of the Constitution, a majority of the schools are under
the jurisdiction of respective States and Union Territories (UT). Hence, the recruitment,
service conditions and deployment of teachers are primarily in the domain of respective State
Governments and UT Administrations. However, Samagra Shiksha, a centrally sponsored

41
 scheme which has been launched in 2018-19 for the education sector extending from pre-
school to class 12 by subsuming three erstwhile schemes i.e., Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA),
Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) and Teacher Education (TE) has provisions
for induction and in-service training of teachers23.

 Section 23(2) of The Right of Children to free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 has
been amended, according to which all untrained in-service elementary teachers are required
to acquire minimum qualifications as laid down by the academic authority by 31stMarch,
2019. The National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) has been entrusted with the task of
conducting the training of untrained in-service elementary teachers. 13,78,979 untrained in-
service teachers have confirmed admissions at NIOS Portal. NIOS is conducting D.El.Ed.
programme through Open Distance Learning (ODL) mode and SWAYAM platform.
SWAYAMPRABHA DTH channels are also used for this purpose23.

 Further, a four year B.Ed integrated course to bring about qualitative improvement in teacher
education programmes in India has been conceptualised and regulations for this course has
been published in official gazette on 22nd November, 2018. The model curriculum prepared
for this course includes crucial aspects like Gender, Inclusive education, ICT, Yoga, Global
Citizenship Education (GCED) and Health & Sanitation. The teaching specialization would
primarily be for the primary levels and the secondary level23.

 In order to provide supplementary learning material for students and for upgrading the skills
of teachers, MHRD has developed a dedicated Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing
(DIKSHA) platform. The high quality e-learning material both for students and teachers are
being uploaded by Ministry and States/UTs on this portal. This is expected to substantially
augment the knowledge base of the students and technical skills of teachers at no additional
cost23.

7.3 Way Forward to Achieve QAEI25

Education is a very vast subject, India in the 21st century surging ahead through its
innovative flagship programmes to achieve the QAEI factor to achieve SDG on education till
2030. To ensure that no one is left behind as SDG emphasizes, there is a need for adequate
physical infrastructure, safe, inclusive environments that nurture learning outcome for all,
irrespective of sex, background or disability status. In general, the aforesaid selected flagship

42
programmes of India and the best practices can act as the trendsetters. The Government with the
existing NGOs and civil societies has to play a very effective role in order to bring significant
improvement in the education sector. Further, NGOs who play the complementary, as well as a
supplementary role to the concerted efforts of the government agencies in imparting education at
different levels, need to actively and efficiently impart their role in achieving SDGs across
different goals. Similarly, efforts should also be made by NGOs and civil societies to raise
general awareness and sensitize the community about the positive and rationale of quality
education for their own benefit. Despite the large number and multiplicity of flagship
programmes, their effective implementation and monitoring can pave the way for better results.
In view of their huge number and variety, there is much less justification to start new flagship
programmes rather than strengthening the existing ones for more effective implementation. Lack
of proper coordination among various programmes and the organizations/ ministries concerned
for the achievement of the common goal has found to be generally responsible for duplication of
efforts, wastage of time and financial resources, loss of complementarities and ineffective
division of labor all leading to low-quality learning outcomes. Positive learning outcomes,
qualified teachers, close proximity to the school, relevant curricula, provision of proper
infrastructure including blackboards and boundary walls, safe drinking water facilities, usable
toilets, MDMS are some of the deciding factors that influence the demand for quality education.
Regardless of the RTE enactments in India, still millions of children are out of school is a matter
of grave concern. At this juncture, conditional cash transfer schemes can play a transformative
role, unless the parents are convinced about the benefits that education can bring in their lives.
SDGs agenda has a very balanced approach towards quality education and decent productive
jobs. It provides scope for regional cooperation in South Asia, as sharing of best practices in
neighboring areas can combat cross-domain challenges. All the goals are interlinked together, so
there is a need to involve all stakeholders relevant to SDGs. There is a need to coordinate the
State and Centre plans to ensure equity in education outcomes along with the need to invest in
quality learning and the importance of technical and vocational training in the education sector.
The allocation of adequate funds to the education sector in India is an essential pre-requisite
condition for improving access, quality, and learning outcomes and of course safety and security
of all the children. Standardization, harmonization, and periodicity of data related to education
would help to measure and quantify the SDG 4 effectively. These indicators can be compared

43
across all states as well as across districts to measure the achievements. This exercise will also
help in understanding where the states lag behind so that targeted policies and interventions can
be directed to achieve desired education outcomes. For that, it will be essential to strengthen
dataset from administrative and household sources. India has already identified the nodal
ministries and departments for each goal that shows the sincerity of the government approach to
achieve sustainable development goals. Education is a crosscutting issue and a goal in itself
which calls for inter-sectoral actions and initiatives along with the allocation of adequate
resources to finance education need to be strictly implemented and reviewed on a regular basis.

8. References

1. https://www.indianetzone.com/39/education_ancient_india.htm
2. https://www.aicte-india.org/downloads/ancient.pdf
3. http://www.vkmaheshwari.com/WP/?p=1786
4. http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/69112/5/chapter%203.pdf
5. https://www.who.int/topics/millennium_development_goals/about/en/
6. http://mhrd.gov.in/rte
7. http://mospi.nic.in/sites/default/files/publication_reports/India_in_figures-2018_rev.pdf
8. https://student.udise.in/
9. http://mhrd.gov.in/mid-day-meal
10. http://www.schooleducation.kar.nic.in/pdffiles/mdmguidelines2006.pdf
11. http://rmsaindia.gov.in/en/
12. http://rmsaindia.gov.in/administrator/components/com_pdf/pdf/d70a200521faf84f2b4d4b0ed
0fbb434-7th-JRM-Aide-Memoire.pdf
13. http://gujarat-education.gov.in/ssa/about_department/activities/activities.htm
14. http://mhrd.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/document-reports/Padhe-Bharat-Badhe-
Bharat.pdf
15. http://rusa.nic.in/
16. http://mhrd.gov.in/rusa
17. http://mhrd.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/upload_document/spemm_report.pdf
18. http://socialjustice.nic.in/SchemeList/Send/26?mid=24541

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 19. https://scholarships.gov.in/
20. http://mhrd.gov.in/statist
21. http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=186977
22. http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=187442
23. http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=188377
24. https://ris.org.in/newasiaforum/achieving-sdg-4-india-moving-quantity-quality-education-all
25. https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/education/

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