Hold door-to-door survey on out-of-school children, Karnataka HC tells BBMP

The amicus curiae submitted that the survey in rural areas, as directed by the Department of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj, is nearing completion

The High Court of Karnataka has asked the BBMP to conduct a door-to-door survey of out-of-school children in its limits, pointing to obligations under the RTE Act.

Senior counsel K N Phaneendra, the amicus curiae in the suo motu petition on the issue of out-of-school children, sought a direction to the BBMP to commence the survey on a day-to-day basis covering children in the 0-18 age group.

The amicus curiae submitted that the survey in rural areas, as directed by the Department of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR), is nearing completion.

The report said that as of June 2021, about 91 per cent households in rural areas and 79 per cent households in urban local bodies (ULBs) have been covered under the survey.

The survey conducted in urban areas revealed that out of 12.28 lakh children in the age group of 6-18, 8,718 are not going to school, while 4,842 have never enrolled. Insofar as the rural areas, 33,344 children are not going to school and 9,716 children never enrolled.

On the survey in the BBMP limits, the report stated that officials have informed in a recent meeting that training has been imparted to the ‘master trainers’ who would in turn train the enumerators regarding the methodology of the survey.

“The BBMP officials will have to speed up the process of commencing and conducting the door-to-door household survey for identification of children aged from birth till 18 years,” the report stated.

A division bench headed by Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka directed the secretary, Urban Development Department (UDD), to issue directions to the BBMP for conducting the survey on par with the survey being conducted in rural areas on the directions of the RDPR.

“We may also clarify here that in any case under Rule 6 (of the model rules under the RTE Act), the BBMP is under an obligation of carrying the door-to-door survey of the age group of 0-14. However, without waiting for the directions of the court, the BBMP may commence the door-to-door survey of the children between the age group of 0-14,” the bench
said.

The matter has been posted to August 24.