The All Bodo Students’ Union (ABSU) has strongly criticised the State Government for its inadequate steps in implementing the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 (RTE, 2009) and the Assam Venture Educational Institution (Provincialisation of Services) Act, 2011 (AVEI, 2011) in the State for which the students body has attracted the attention of the government for reconciling the situation in the better interest of the students of the State.
The ABSU has pointed out that the RTE, 2009 which has came into effect since April 1, 2010 has provided free and compulsory education to children between 6-14 years of age group. In contrast to the progress made in other States in Assam sufficient steps have not been taken so far to provide for lower primary, upper primary and secondary schools within the distance of 1 km, 3 km and 5 km respectively with adequate infrastructure and qualified teachers apart from fulfilling the conditions of teacher-student ratio, room for every teacher, separate toilets for boys and girls, safe drinking water, kitchen, playground, boundary wall in every school apart from providing Bodo teachers or trained teachers in Bodo medium schools have not yet been seriously taken care of for proper implementation of the RTE, 2009, the ABSU stated.
Both the president and secretary of ABSU Promod Boro and Jiron Basumatary in a joint statement further revealed that suitable mechanism has also not been taken in hand by the State government to popularise the various provisions of RTE, 2009 in the society as a result of which it is not serving the true purpose for lack of effective implementation nor catering to effective goal for quality education through equitable and mother language process of learning.
They have also said that AVEI,2011enacted by the State government has been also confusing in the present form as this will create a hue and cry among the teachers who would became unemployed due to a draconian provision that only regularize the teachers who have completed 10 years of contiguous service in recognised schools till December 31, 2005 only. At the same time such a step would definitely deprived students from their right to education for devoid of teachers in their institutions for which the government has to consider a fresh look into the matter for provincialisation of schools smoothly without any such pre condition detrimental to the interest of the in-service teachers, students and the institutions at large, they opined.
ABSU has also strongly condemned the policy of the government for contractual appointment of teachers as most unwise who pass out in TET examination which could never expect dedicated services from such appointments. Both the ABSU leaders have also appealed the government to take care of the possible corruption through middlemen at official level in the name of appointments after TET while ABSU has appealed the government to provide free books also to the students reading in private schools as per government imperatives.
ABSU has therefore demanded provincialisation of schools and services of teachers serving there without any pre condition with regard to time frame, permanent appointment of teachers who pass out in the TET, providing adequate free text books to the students reading in private schools, preventing entry of middleman in the system of teachers appointment, separate directorate for Bodo medium institutions, enhancement in number of posts in Junior Colleges and appointing Bodo teachers who were deprived, regularizing the working teachers employed under EGS, declare March 31, the birthday of Bodofa UN Brahma as students day among others.
source:assam tribune