Education is a chimera for these children

 Right to Education may be the new found slogan being loudly trumpeted across the country. However, at City’s NC Colony, neither education or RTE has found its way in their lexicon or means anything to the children that populate this slum.

Adilakshmi’s singular lament: Let us know of any benefits from the government for our children so that we can send them to school is a wail in the wilderness with none to hear her and her ilk’s litany.

Despite boasting of five government schools in its vicinity, for the children of this slum, it’s just chasing the chimera, for education comes at a price and premium, and so, it simply is inaccessible.

English, Kannada and Tamil medium schools both primary and high schools are located within maximum of three kilometres from the place. In spite of this, schooling remains inaccessible.

With their elders earning a measly monthly wage of Rs 5,000, poverty is the prime culprit, coupled with poor health, which keeps the children from the portals of education. Either they have never seen a school or have dropped out to eke a livelihood to supplement their elder’s income. The fortunate among them have studied up to Class VI.

Lidia is one such lucky lass, who aspires donning the doctor’s don. With grandmother, Adilakshmi, determined to send her to college and provide best of education, Lidia, who also takes tuition, to keep the light of education burning bright, however, dreads the inevitable factors that forced her friends to drop out may see her dreams die young — puberty, the common reasons and physical weakness.

Vicious circle

It is a vicious circle. Boys, dropping out of school, looking for employment, having to take care of their large families. It’s the same drudgery of their parents that they are driven to. The daughters, married into families in same settlement, as parents find it an ‘inexpensive’ arrangement, too are caught in the same cul de sac.

In a sign of proverbial tokenism and lip-service, Director for Primary Education Dev Prakash said a survey to find out the drop outs and employing cluster resource persons (CRP) to help them back to school would be taken up soon.