Gujarat's pre-primary institutions free to run without safety, quality standards, sans official control: RTI reply

By A Representative
Neither Gujarat government’s education department, nor women and child department, has any information about private pre-primary schools operating in the state. In separate replies to a right to information (RTI) plea by Mujahid Nafees, they have said, pre-primary schools do not come under their purview, hence the question of providing information on them “does not arise.”
A senior activist, Nafees received similar a reply from officials in Ahmedabad city when he sought to know, through his RTI application dated December 5, 2016, about the number of pre-primary schools, their name and address, number of children enrolled in there, status of their recognition as of 2016, a list of officials who monitor them, and so on.
Pointing out that he had sought information because a large number of pre-primary schools have mushroomed all around in Ahmedabad, with few of them charging hefty fees up to Rs 40,000 per year, Nafees said, the replies suggest none of them are obliged to comply by “any safety or quality standards.”
“The state government does not think it necessary to monitor them. Toddlers in the age group 3 to 6, going to these schools, are indeed open to risk”, Nafees said, adding, “Apparently, the government does not seem to think they fall under the Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009."
Ironically, Section 11 of the RTE Act says, “With a view to prepare children above the age of three years for elementary education and to provide early childhood care and education for all children until they complete the age of six years, the appropriate Government shall make necessary arrangement for providing free pre-school education for such children.”
While the Government of India came up with a National Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Policy in 2013 (download HERE), according to Nafees, who has been actively advocating policy changes in the field of education, says, “Neither Gujarat, nor any other state, has implemented it.”
Referring to such schools, the policy seeks “protection” of 3 to 6 year-old children “from hazards”, even as enforcing basic standards “across public, private and non-governmental service providers”. It insists, the government should have a well-oiled system at “regional, state, district and sub-district levels” to monitor pre-school education.
Enumerating basic requirements, the policy says, each classroom should be “measuring at least 35 square meters for a group of 30 children”, apart from adequate, at least 30 square meters, of “outdoor space”. The adult/caregiver-child ratio should be 1:20 for 3-6 year-old children, and 1:10 for below the age of 3, it adds.
It talks of “age- and developmentally-appropriate child centric curriculum” in “mother tongue/local vernacular” and “toys and learning materials”, a safe building “which is within easy approach” and is surrounded by “green area”, and “adequate and safe drinking water facilities”.
It further talks of separate boys’ and girls’ “child-friendly toilets and hand wash facilities”, separate space for “cooking nutritionally-balanced meals and nap time”, first aid facilities, and so on.
In a separate RTI query, Nafees said, he has been told that even in 52,000-odd anganwadis (pre-school) centres run by the Gujarat government, mainly in the rural areas, 11,000, as of September 2016, did not basic toilet facilities.
In yet another RTI plea of 2014, he said, he received a reply from the state government that 1,961 anganwadis were running without any anganwadi workers, 3,096 did not have any helpers, and 15,695 (33%) did have water facility.

Comments

Academics urge Azim Premji University to drop FIR against Student Reading Circle

By A Representative A group of academics and civil society members has issued an open letter to the leadership of Azim Premji University expressing concern over the filing of a police complaint that led to an FIR against a student-run reading circle following a recent incident of violence on campus. The signatories state that they hold the university in high regard for its commitment to constitutional values, critical inquiry and ethical public engagement, and argue that it is precisely because of this reputation that the present development is troubling.

Was Netaji forced to alter face, die in obscurity in USSR in 1975? Was he so meek?

By Rajiv Shah This should sound almost hilarious. Not only did Subhas Chandra Bose not die in a plane crash in Taipei, nor was he the mysterious Gumnami Baba who reportedly passed away on 16 September 1985 in Ayodhya, but we are now told that he actually died in 1975—date unknown—“in oblivion” somewhere in the former Soviet Union. Which city? Moscow? No one seems to know.

UAPA action against Telangana activist: Criminalising legitimate democratic activity?

By A Representative The National Investigation Agency's Hyderabad branch has issued notices to more than ten individuals in Telangana in connection with FIR No. RC-04/2025. Those served include activists, former student leaders, civil rights advocates, poets, writers, retired schoolteachers, and local leaders associated with the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Indian National Congress.

Asbestos contamination in children’s products highlights global oversight gaps

By A Representative A commentary published by the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS) has drawn attention to the challenges governments face in responding effectively to global public-health risks. In an article written by Laurie Kazan-Allen and published on March 5, 2026, the author examines how the discovery of asbestos contamination in children’s play products has raised questions about regulatory oversight and international product safety. The article opens by reflecting on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that governments in several countries were slow to respond to early warning signs of the crisis. Referring to the experience of the United Kingdom, the author writes that delays in implementing protective measures contributed to “232,112 recorded deaths and over a million people suffering from long Covid.” The commentary uses this example to illustrate what it describes as the dangers of underestimating emerging threats. Attention then turns...

The kitchen as prison: A feminist elegy for domestic slavery

By Garima Srivastava* Kumar Ambuj stands as one of the most incisive voices in contemporary Hindi poetry. His work, stripped of ornamentation, speaks directly to the lived realities of India’s marginalized—women, the rural poor, and those crushed under invisible forms of violence. His celebrated poem “Women Who Cook” (Khānā Banātī Striyāṃ) is not merely about food preparation; it is a searing indictment of patriarchal domestic structures that reduce women’s existence to endless, unpaid labour.

Aligning too closely with U.S., allies, India’s silence on IRIS Dena raises troubling questions

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* The reported sinking of the Iranian ship IRIS Dena in the Indian Ocean near Sri Lanka raises troubling questions about international norms and the credibility of the so-called rule-based order. If indeed the vessel was attacked by the American Navy while returning from a joint exercise in Visakhapatnam, it would represent a serious breach of trust and a violation of the principles that govern such cooperative engagements. Warships participating in these exercises are generally not armed for combat; they are meant to symbolize solidarity and friendship. The incident, therefore, is not only shocking but also deeply ironic.

India’s foreign policy at crossroads: Cost of silence in the face of aggression

By Venkatesh Narayanan, Sandeep Pandey The widely anticipated yet unprovoked attack on Iran on March 1 by the United States and Israel has drawn sharp criticism from several quarters around the world. Reports indicate that the strikes have resulted in significant civilian casualties, including 165 elementary school girls, 20 female volleyball players, and many other civilians.

India’s green energy push faces talent crunch amidst record growth at 16% CAGR

By Jag Jivan* A new study by a top consulting firm has found that India’s cleantech sector is entering a decisive growth phase, with strong policy backing, record capacity additions and surging investor interest, but facing mounting pressure on talent supply and rising compensation costs .

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Rajiv Shah Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Search This Blog