Kumar has problems aplenty. Ninety-five per cent of the budget set aside for schools gets spent on salaries and pensions. What is left goes for creation of infrastructure and providing reading material for the students. Even a basic matter like procuring chalks becomes controversial with charges of one supplier favoured over another. Close to Rs 5,000 crore is being spent on elementary education even as the cess on education yields as much. Yet the money has not yielded tangible results. Educationists like Anil Sadgopal argue that an additional Rs 52,000 crore is required to actually put every child in school. "Close to 80 per cent of Dalit girls don't make it to even standard eight," says Sadgopal.
While Sadgopal is not foisting the task of improving elementary education on higher professional courses, he says it is a humongous problem that needs attention, especially since the IIMs have apparently forfeited the agenda for which they were set up in the first place. This was to suggest models for efficient management of the country. Sadgopal points out that he protested a recent decision to open such institutes in Singapore for the purpose of earning money. "I tried to remind them the purpose for which they were established," he says.
Now, consider the alarming statistics furnished by Mumbai-based NGO Pratham in its nationwide Annual Status of Education Report 2005. While it's good news that 93.4 per cent of children between 6 and 14 are enrolled in schools, 71.2 per cent of children who don't attend schools come from just five states: Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Orissa. A good 52.8 per cent girls don't attend schools. As for the quality of education, the survey says 35 per cent of first standard children could not read a simple paragraph. In all, 22 per cent children in government schools cannot read second standard-level textbooks. Points out Madhav Chavan of Pratham: "The country spends close to Rs 3,000 annually per child, yet the system doesn't instil confidence. It's not about the quantity of money but the way it is spent. There is no way of showing right now how the money gets spent." Clearly, primary education needs urgent attention and restructuring. A strong beginning is essential for a solid foundation for elementary education, the survey notes. Any suggestions from management experts?
