Education in India

breeding in India has a history stretchability back to the ancient urban centres of learning at Taxila and Nalanda. Western reading became ingrained into Indian parliamentary law with the establishment of the British Raj. reproduction in India falls under the control of both the Union political science and the states, with some responsibilities lying with the Union and the states having autonomy for others. The discordant articles of the Indian Constitution provide for pedagogy as a fundamental right. Most universities in India atomic second 18 Union or press out G everyplacenment control direct.India has do a huge draw close in terms of increasing elementary grooming pictureance tramp and expanding literacy to approximately two thirds of the population. 2 Indias improved rearing administration is often cited as one of the main contributors to the economicalal rise of India. 3 Much of the progress in discipline has been credited to various semiprivate institutio ns. 4 The private schooling market in India is estimated to be worth $40 billion in cc8 and will increase to $68 billion by 2012. 4 However, India continues to face challenges.Despite growing investment in fostering, 35% of the population is untaught and plainly 15% of the students r for each one high cultivate. 5 As of 2008, Indias post- utility(prenominal) high schools offer only enough put for 7% of Indias college- date population, 25% of teaching positions nationwide argon vacant, and 57% of college professors lack either a masters or PhD degree. 6 As of 2007, there be 1522 degree-granting engineering colleges in India with an annual student in constrict of 582,000,7 plus 1,244 polytechnics with an annual intake of 265,000.However, these institutions face shortfall of faculty and concerns have been raised over the quality of teaching method. 8 Three Indian universities were listed in the Times Higher raising list of the worlds top 200 universities Indian Institutes of Technology, Indian Institutes of Man datement, and Jawaharlal Nehru University in 2005 and 2006. 9 Six Indian Institutes of Technology and the Birla Institute of Technology and Science Pilani were listed among the top 20 science and applied science schools in Asia by Asiaweek. 10 The Indian School of Business situated in Hyderabad was rank bite 12 in global MBA rankings by the Financial Times of London in 201011 fleck the each(prenominal) India Institute of Medical Sciences has been recognized as a global leader in medical examination research and treatment. 12Contents hide 1 History 2 Overview 2. 1 immemorial education 2. 2 standby education 2. 3 Tertiary education 2. 4 Technical education 3 Literacy 4 Attainment 5 Private education 6 Womens Education 7 Rural education 8 Issues 9 Initiatives 10 Central brass interlocking 10. 1 cipher 10. Public Expenditure on Education in India 10. 3 Legislative framework 11 Notes 12 References 13 External links edit History cloistral orders of education under the supervision of a guru was a favored form of education for the nobility in ancient India. 13 The companionship in these orders was often related to the tasks a section of the society had to perform. 14 The priest kind, the Brahmins, were imparted knowledge of religion, philosophy, and other ancillary branches while the warrior variance, the Kshatriya, were trained in the various aspects of warfare. 14 The business class, the Vaishya, were taught their trade and the lowest class of the Shudras was universally deprived of educational advantages. 14 The book of laws, the Manusmriti, and the treatise on statecraft the Arthashastra were among the influential works of this era which resile the forthlook and understanding of the world at the time. 14 Apart from the monastic orders, institutions of higher learning and universities flourished in India swell up before the common era, and continued to deliver education into the common era. 15 Secular Buddhi st institutions cropped up on with monasteries. 14 These institutions imparted practical education, e. g. medicine. 14 A number of urban learning centres became increasingly visible from the period betwixt 200 BCE to 400 CE. 16 The important urban centres of learning were Taxila and Nalanda, among others. 16 These institutions frameatically imparted knowledge and attracted a number of foreign students to arena topics such as logic, grammar, medicine, metaphysics, arts and crafts. 16By the time of the visit of the Islamic scholar Alberuni (973-1048 CE), India already had a sophisticated system of mathematics and science in place, and had made a number of inventions and discoveries. 17 With the arrival of the British Raj in India a class of Westernized elite was versed in the Western system of education which the British had introduced. 18 This system soon became solidified in India as a number of primary, secondary, and 3rd centres for education cropped up during the colonial er a. 18 Between 1867 and 1941 the British increased the per centumage of the population in Primary and Secondary Education from around 0. 6% of the population in 1867 to over 3. 5% of the population in 1941. However this was very some(prenominal) lower than the equivalent figures for Europe where in 1911 amid 8 and 18% of the population were in Primary and Secondary education. 19 Additionally literacy was to a fault improved. In 1901 the literacy point in India was only about 5% though by In habituation it was nearly 20%. 20 avocation independence in 1947, Maulana Azad, Indias first education see envisaged strong central organization control over education throughout the country, with a changeless educational system. 21 However, given the cultural and linguistic diversity of India, it was only the higher education dealing with science and technology that came under the jurisdiction of the central political science. 21 The authorities also held powers to make national policies for educational development and could gravel selected aspects of education throughout India. 22 The central government of India formulate the internal insurance on Education (NPE) in 1986 and also reinforced the course of instruction of Action (POA) in 1986. 23 The government initiated some(prenominal) measures the launching of DPEP (District Primary Education Programme) and SSA (Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan,24 Indias initiative for Education for All) and setting up of Navodaya Vidyalaya and other discriminating schools in every district, advances in effeminate education, inter-disciplinary research and establishment of open universities.Indias NPE also ascertains the national System of Education, which ensures some uniformity while pickings into account regional education needs. The NPE also stresses on higher spending on education, envisaging a reckon of more than 6% of the gross(a) Domestic Product. 23 While the need for wider reform in the primary and secondary sectors is r ecognized as an issue, the emphasis is also on the development of science and technology education infrastructure. edit Overview The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) is the apex body for broadcast related looks for school education in India. 25 The NCERT provides promote and technical assistance to a number of schools in India and oversees umpteen aspects of carry outment of education policies. 26 In India, the various curriculum bodies governing school education system are The state government boards, in which the volume of Indian children are enrolled. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) board. The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) board. The National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) board. internationalistic schools affiliated to the International Baccalaureate Programme and/or the Cambridge International Examinations. Islamic Madrasah schools, whose boards are controlled by local state governments, or a utonomous, or affiliated with Darul Uloom Deoband. self-governing schools like Woodstock School, Auroville, Patha Bhavan and Ananda Marga Gurukula. In addition, NUEPA (National University of Educational syllabusning and Administration)27 and NCTE (National Council for Teacher Education) are responsible for the management of the education system and teacher accreditation. 28 edit Primary education The Indian government lays emphasis to primary education up to the age of fourteen old age (referred to as Elementary Education in India. 29) The Indian government has also ban child labour in order to ensure that the children do not enter unsafe working(a) conditions. 29 However, both chuck up the sponge education and the ban on child labor are difficult to enforce due to economic disparity and social conditions. 29 80% of all recognized schools at the Elementary set up are government run or back up, making it the largest provider of education in the Country. 30 However, due to sho rtage of resources and lack of political will, this system suffers from massive gaps including high pupil teacher ratios, shortage of infrastructure and poor deal aim of teacher training. Education has also been made free29 for children for six to 14 years of age or up to class VIII under the Right of Children to Free and despotic Education Act 2009. 31 in that respect have been several efforts to enhance quality made by the government. The District Primary Education Programme (DPEP) was launched in 1994 with an aim to universalize primary education in India by reforming and vitalizing the existing primary education system. 32 85% of the DPEP was funded by the central government and the endureing 15 percent was funded by the states. 32 The DPEP, which had subject 160000 forward-looking schools including 84000 alternative education schools delivering alternative education to approximately 3. 5 million children, was also supported by UNICEF and other international programmes. 3 2 This primary education stratagem has also shown a high Gross Enrollment Ratio of 9395% for the last three years in some states. 32 monumental improvement in staffing and enrollment of girls has also been made as a part of this shunning. 32 The current scheme for universalization of Education for All is the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan which is one of the largest education initiatives in the world. Enrollment has been enhanced, but the levels of quality remain low. edit Secondary education The National Policy on Education (NPE), 1986, has provided for environment sensory faculty, science and technology education, and introduction of handed-down elements such as Yoga into the Indian secondary school system. 33 Secondary education covers children 14-18 which covers 88. 5 million children agree to the Census, 2001.However, enrolment figures show that only 31 million of these children were attending schools in 2001-02, which means that two-third of the population remained out of school. 34 A significant feature of Indias secondary school system is the emphasis on inclusion of the disfavour sections of the society. Professionals from formal institutes are often called to support in vocational training. Another feature of Indias secondary school system is its emphasis on profession based vocational training to help students attain skills for examineing a vocation of his/her choosing. 35 A significant new feature has been the extension of SSA to secondary education in the form of the Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan36 A special Integrated Education for Disabled Children (IEDC) programme was started in 1974 with a charge on primary education. 25 but which was converted into Inclusive Education at Secondary Stage37 Another noteworthy special programme, the Kendriya Vidyalaya project, was started for the employees of the central government of India, who are distributed throughout the country.The government started the Kendriya Vidyalaya project in 1965 to provide uniform education in institutions following the equivalent syllabus at the same pace regardless of the placement to which the employees family has been transferred. 25 edit Tertiary education Our university system is, in m whatever parts, in a state of disrepair In close elemental the districts in the country, higher education enrollments are aby lowlyy low, almost two-third of our universities and 90 per cent of our colleges are rated as downstairs average on quality parametersI am concerned that in many states university appointments, including that of vice-chancellors, have been politicised and have become subject to caste and communal considerations, there are complaints of favouritism and corruption. thrill Minister Manmohan Singh in 200738 Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. Indias higher education system is the third largest in the world, afterward China and the United States. 39 The main governing body at the tertiary level is the University Grants Commission (India ), which enforces its standards, advises the government, and helps aline between the centre and the state. 40 Accreditation for higher learning is overseen by 12 autonomous institutions established by the University Grants Commission. 41 As of 2009, India has 20 central universities, 215 state universities, blow deemed universities, 5 institutions established and functioning under the State Act, and 13 institutes which are of national importance. 40 Other institutions include 16000 colleges, including 1800 exclusive womens colleges, functioning under these universities and institutions. 40 The emphasis in the tertiary level of education lies on science and technology. 42 Indian educational institutions by 2004 consisted of a large number of technology institutes. 43 Distance learning is also a feature of the Indian higher education system. 43 approximately institutions of India, such as the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), have been globally acclaimed for their standard of education. 43 The IITs enroll about 8000 students annually and the alumni have contributed to both the growth of the private sector and the man sectors of India. 44 Besides top rated universities which provide extremely competitive world class education to their pupil, India is also home to many universities which have been founded with the sole purpose of making easy money. Regulatory authorities like UGC and AICTE have been trying very hard to terminate the menace of private universities which are running courses without any affiliation or recognition. Students from cracker-barrel and semi urban background often fall prey to these institutes and colleges. 45dead link edit Technical educationFrom the first Five stratum Plan onwards Indias emphasis was to develop a pool of scientifically inclined manpower. 46 Indias National Policy on Education (NPE) provisioned for an apex body for regulation and development of higher technical education, which came into being as the All In dia Council for Technical Education (AICTE) in 1987 through an act of the Indian parliament. 47 At the level of the centre the Indian Institutes of Technology and the Indian Institutes of Information Technology are deemed of national importance. 47 The Indian Institutes of Management are also among the nations premier education facilities. 47 Several Regional Engineering Colleges (REC) have been converted into National Institutes of Technology. 47 The UGC has inter-university centres at a number of locations throughout India to promote common research, e. g. the Nuclear Science Centre at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. 48 edit Literacy main(prenominal) article Literacy in India consort to the Census of 2001, every person above the age of 7 years who can read and write in any language is said to be literate.According to this criterion, the 2001 survey holds the National Literacy Rate to be around 64. 84%. 49 Government statistics of 2001 also hold that the rate of incre ase in literacy is more in hobnailed areas than in urban areas. 49 Female literacy was at a national average of 53. 63% whereas the male literacy was 75. 26%. 49 Within the Indian states, Kerala has shown the highest literacy rates of 90. 02% whereas Bihar averaged lower than 50% literacy, the lowest in India. 49 The 2001 statistics also indicated that the total number of absolute non-literates in the country was 304 million. 49 edit Attainment dry land Bank statistics found that fewer than 40 percent of adolescents in India attend secondary schools. 2 The Economist reports that half of 10-year-old rural children could not read at a basic level, over 60% were unable to do division, and half dropped out by the age 14. 50 Only one in ten young people have access to tertiary education. 2 Out of those who receive higher education, Mercer Consulting estimates that only a quarter of graduates are employable. 51An optimistic estimate is that only one in five job-seekers in India has ever had any sort of vocational training. 52 edit Private education According to current estimates, 80% of all schools are government schools30 making the government the major provider of education. However, because of poor quality of public education, 27% of Indian children are privately educated. 53 According to some research, private schools often provide superior results at a fraction of the unit cost of government schools. 505455 However, others have suggested that private schools fail to provide education to the poorest families, a selective being only a fifth of the schools and have in the past ignored Court orders for their regulation56 In their favour, it has been pointed out that private schools cover the entire curriculum and offer extra-curricular activities such as science fairs, general knowledge, sports, music and drama. 53 The pupil teacher ratios are much better in private schools (131 to 137 for government schools and more teachers in private schools are female person. 57 There is some disgreement over which system has better educated teachers. According to the latest DISE survey, the percentage of untrained teachers (paratechers) is 54. 91% in private, compared to 44. 88% in government schools and only 2. 32% teachers in unaided schools receive inservice training compared to 43. 44% for government schools. The rival in the school market is intense, yet most schools make profit. 53 Even the poorest often go to private schools despite the fact that government schools are free. A study found that 65% of schoolchildren in Hyderabads slums attend private schools. 55 Private schools are often operating illegally. A 2001 study found that it takes 14 different licenses from four different authorities to open a private school in New Delhi and could take years if done legally. 55 However, operation of unrecognized schools has been made illegal under the Right to Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act31 which has also significantly simplified the process of obtaining recognition. edit Womens Education Girls in school near Baroda, Gujarat. soak up also Women in India Women have much lower literacy rate than men.Far fewer girls are enrolled in the schools, and many of them drop out. 58 According to a 1998 report by U. S. Department of Commerce, the chief barrier to female education in India are inadequate school facilities (such as sanitary facilities), shortage of female teachers and grammatical gender bias in curriculum (majority of the female characters being depicted as weak and helpless)59 The number of literate women among the female population of India was between 2-6% from the British Raj onwards to the formation of the Republic of India in 1947. 60 Concerted efforts led to improvement from 15. 3% in 1961 to 28. % in 1981. 60 By 2001 literacy for women had exceeded 50% of the overall female population, though these statistics were salve very low compared to world standards and even male literacy deep down India. 61 Recently the Indian government has launched Saakshar Bharat military commission for Female Literacy. This mission aims to bring down female illiteracy by half of its present level. Sita Anantha Raman outlines the progress of womens education in IndiaSince 1947 the Indian government has tried to provide incentives for girls school attendance through programs for noon meals, free books, and uniforms.This welfare thrust raised primary enrollment between 1951 and 1981. In 1986 the National Policy on Education decided to restructure education in tune with the social framework of each state, and with larger national goals. It emphasized that education was necessary for democracy, and central to the improvement of womens condition. The new indemnity aimed at social change through revised texts, curricula, increased funding for schools, expansion in the numbers of schools, and polity improvements. Emphasis was placed on expanding girls occupational centers and primary education seconda ry and higher education and rural and urban institutions.The report tried to connect problems like low school attendance with poverty, and the dependence on girls for housework and sibling day care. The National Literacy Mission also worked through female tutors in villages. Although the minimum marriage age is now eighteen for girls, many continue to be married much earlier. Therefore, at the secondary level, female dropout rates are high. 62 Sita Anantha Raman also maintains that while the educated Indian women hands maintains professionalism, the men outnumber them in most fields and, in some cases, receive higher income for the same positions. 62 edit Rural education A primary school in a village in Madhya Pradesh. Following independence, India viewed education as an effective tool for bringing social change through community development. 63 The administrative control was effectively initiated in the 1950s, when, in 1952, the government grouped villages under a Community instr uction Blockan authority under national programme which could control education in up to 100 villages. 63 A Block Development Officer oversaw a geographical area of 150 square miles which could contain a population of as many as 70000 people. 63Setty and Ross elaborate on the role of such programmes, themselves carve up further into individual-based, community based, or the Individual-cum-community-based, in which microscopic levels of development are overseen at village level by an appointed workerThe community development programmes comprise agriculture, animal husbandry, cooperation, rural industries, rural engineering (consisting of minor irrigation, roads, buildings), health and sanitation including family welfare, family planning, women welfare, child care and nutrition, education including adult education, social education and literacy, younker welfare and community organisation.In each of these areas of development there are several programmes, schemes and activities which are additive, expanding and tapered off covering the total community, some segments, or specific target populations such as small and marginal farmers, artisans, women and in general people below the poverty line. 63 Despite some setbacks the rural education programmes continued throughout the 1950s, with support from private institutions. 64 A sizable network of rural education had been established by the time the Gandhigram Rural Institute was established and 5, 200 Community Development Blocks were established in India. 65 Nursery schools, elementary schools, secondary school, and schools for adult education for women were set up. 65 The government continued to view rural education as an agenda that could be relatively free from bureaucratic backlog and general stagnation. 65 However, in some cases lack of financing balanced the gains made by rural education institutes of India. 66 Some ideas failed to find acceptability among Indias poor and investments made by the government sometimes yielded little results. 66 Today, government rural schools remain poorly funded and understaffed. Several foundations, such as the Rural Development Foundation (Hyderabad), actively build high-quality rural schools, but the number of students served is small. edit Issues One study found out that 25% of public sector teachers and 40% of public sector medical workers were absent during the survey. Among teachers who were paid to teach, absence rates ranged from 15% in Maharashtra to 71% in Bihar.Only 1 in nearly 3000 public school head teachers had ever pink-slipped a teacher for repeated absence. 67 A study on teachers by Kremer etc. found that only about half were teaching, during unannounced visits to a nationally representative sample of government primary schools in India. . 67 Modern education in India is often criticized for being based on rote learning alternatively than problem solving. BusinessWeek denigrates the Indian curriculum saying it revolves around rote l earning. 68 and ExpressIndia suggests that students are focused on cramming. 69 A study of 188 government-run primary schools found that 59% of the schools had no drinking water and 89% had no toilets. 70 2003-04 info by National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration revealed that only 3. 5% of primary schools in Bihar and Chhattisgarh had toilets for girls. In Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh, rates were 12-16%. 71 Fake degrees are a problem. One raid in Bihar found 0. 1 million fake certificates. 72 In February 2009, the University Grant Commission found 19 fake institutions operating in India. 73 Only 16% of manufacturers in India offer in-service training to their employees, compared with over 90% in China. 74 edit Initiatives Boys seated in school near Baroda, Gujarat. The madrasah of Jamia Masjid mosque in Srirangapatna.Following Indias independence a number of rules were formulated for the backward schedule C astes and the plan Tribes of India, and in 1960 a list identifying 405 plan Castes and 225 Scheduled Tribes was published by the central government. 75 An amendment was made to the list in 1975, which identified 841 Scheduled Castes and 510 Scheduled Tribes. 75 The total percentage of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes combined was found to be 22. 5 percent with the Scheduled Castes accounting for 17 percent and the Scheduled Tribes accounting for the remaining 7. 5 percent. 75 Following the report many Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes increasingly referred to themselves as Dalit, a Marathi language terminology used by B. R. Ambedkar which literally means oppressed. 75The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes are provided for in many of Indias educational programmes. 76 Special reservations are also provided for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in India, e. g. a reservation of 15% in Kendriya Vidyalaya for Scheduled Castes and another reservation of 7. 5% in Kendr iya Vidyalaya for Scheduled Tribes. 76 Similar reservations are held by the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in many schemes and educational facilities in India. 76 The remote and far-flung regions of North East India are provided for under the Non Lapsible Central pool of Resources (NLCPR) since 1998-1999. 77 The NLCPR aims to provide gold for infrastructure development in these remote areas. 77The government objective for the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), started in 2001, is to provide education to children between 614 years by 2010. 78 The programme focuses specially on girls and children with challenged social or financial backgrounds. 78 The SSA also aims to provide practical infrastructure and relevant source material in form of free textbooks to children in remote areas. 78 The SSA also aims at widening computer education in rural areas. 78 SSA is presently working with Agastya International Foundation an educational NGO to augment its efforts in making science curri culum current and exciting. However, some objectives of the SSA, e. g. enrollment of all children under the scheme in schools by 2005 remain unfulfilled. 78 Education Guarantee scheme and Alternative and Innovative Education are components of the SSA. 78 Women from remote, underdeveloped areas or from weaker social groups in Andra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand, fall under the Mahila Samakhya Scheme, initiated in 1989. 79 Apart from eatable for education this programme also aims to raise awareness by holding meetings and seminars at rural levels. 79 The government allowed 340 million rupees during 200708 to carry out this scheme over 83 districts including more than 21, 000 villages. 79 Currently there are 68 Bal Bhavans and 10 Bal Kendra affiliated to the National Bal Bhavan. 80 The scheme involves educational and social activities and recognising children with a marked talent for a particular educational stream. 80 A number of programmes and activities are held under this scheme, which also involves cultural exchanges and participation in several international forums. 80 Indias minorities, especially the ones considered educationally backward by the government, are provided for in the 1992 amendment of the Indian National Policy on Education (NPE). 81 The government initiated the Scheme of Area Intensive Programme for Educationally Backward Minorities and Scheme of Financial Assistance or modernisation of Madarsa Education as part of its revised Programme of Action (1992). 81 Both these schemes were started nationwide by 1994. 81 In 2004 the Indian parliament allowed an act which enabled minority education establishments to seek university affiliations if they passed the required norms. 81 edit Central government involvement edit Budget As a part of the tenth Five year Plan (20022007), the central government of India outlined an expenditure of 65. 6% of its total education budget of Rs. 438250 m illion, or (Rs. 287500 million) on elementary education 9. 9% (Rs. 43250 million) on secondary education 2. 9% (Rs. 12500 million) on adult education 9. 5% (Rs. 41765 million) on higher education 10. 7% (Rs. 7000 million) on technical education and the remaining 1. 4% (Rs. 6235 million) on sundry(a) education schemes. 82 According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), India has the lowest public expenditure on higher education per student in the world. 83 See also Education in India Five Year Plan Expenditure edit Public Expenditure on Education in India In recent times, several major announcements were made for developing the poor state of affairs in education sector in India, the most notable ones being the National Common Minimum Programme (NCMP) of the United Progressive bail bond (UPA) government.The announcements are (a) To progressively increase expenditure on education to around 6 percent of gross domestic product. (b) To support this increase in expenditure on education, and to increase the quality of education, there would be an imposition of an education cess over all central government taxes. (c) To ensure that no one is denied of education due to economic backwardness and poverty. (d) To make right to education a fundamental right for all children in the age group 614 years. (e) To universalize education through its flagship programmes such as Sarva Siksha Abhiyan and Mid twenty-four hours Meal. However, even after five years of implementation of NCMP, not much progress has been done on these promises or announcements.The public expenditure on education has actually declined from around 3. 23 percent of GDP in 2000-2001 to 2. 88 percent in the recent times. As a proportion of total government expenditure, it has declined from around 11. 1 percent in 2000-2001 to around 9. 98 percent during UPA rule. A policy legal brief issued by Network for Social Accountability (NSA)84 titled NSA Response to Educati on Sector Interventions in Union Budget UPA Rule and the Education Sector85 provides significant revelation to this fact. Due to a declining priority of education in the public policy paradigm in India, there has been an exponential growth in the private expenditure on education also. As per the available information, the private out of pocket expenditure by the working class population for the education of their children in India has increased by around 1150 percent or around 12. 5 times over the last decade. 86 edit Legislative framework Article 45, of the Constitution of India originally statedThe State shall endeavour to provide, within a period of ten years from the commencement of this Constitution, for free and compulsory education for all children until they complete the age of fourteen years. 21 This article was a directive principle of state policy within India, effectively meaning that it was within a set of rules that were meant to be followed in spirit and the governmen t could not be held to court if the actual letter was not followed. 87 However, the enforcement of this directive principle became a matter of debate since this principle held obvious emotive and practical value, and was legally the only directive principle within the Indian constitution to have a time limit. 87 Following initiatives by the Supreme Court of India during the nineties the Ninety-third amendment bill suggested three separate amendments to the Indian constitution88 The constitution of India was amended to include a new article, 21A, which readThe State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of six to fourteen years in a such manner as the State may, by law, determine. 89Article 45 was proposed to be substituted by the article which readProvision for early childhood care and education to children below the age of six years The State shall endeavour to provide early childhood care and education for all children until they complete the age of sixteen years. 89 Another article, 51A, was to additionally have the clause a upraise or guardian shall provide opportunities for education to his child or, as the case may be, a ward between the age of six to fourteen years. 89 The bill was passed unanimously in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian parliament, on November 28, 2001. 90 It was later passed by the upper housethe Rajya Sabhaon May 14, 2002. 90 After being signed by the President of India the Indian constitution was amended formally for the eighty sixth time and the bill came into effect. 90 Since consequently those between the age of 614 have a fundamental right to education. 91 Article 46 of the Constitution of India holds thatThe State shall promote, with special care, the education and economic interests of the weaker sections of the people, and in particular of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, and shall harbor them from social injustice and all forms of social exploitation. 49 Other provisio ns for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes can be found in Articles 330, 332, 335, 338342. 49 Both the 5th and the 6th Schedules of the Constitution also make special provisions for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. 49