I agree. And one crucial human right is Right to Primary Education, a human right which is now a mandate guaranteed by the Constitution of India by way of the Eighty-sixth Amendment Act, 2002. Article 21-A in the Constitution of India to provide free and compulsory education of all children in the age group of six to fourteen years as a Fundamental Right in such a manner as the State may, by law, determine.

However, though there have been an increase in the number of enrolments, there is still a dearth in terms of comprehension, meaning enrolments haven’t translated into valuable education or rather, the ability to secure the ends of learning: reading and writing. This is also reflected in many reports including in that of private surveys such as that of The Annual Status of Education Report, which, amongst others, also seeks to evaluate various dimensions of the preparedness of youth, age 14-18, in rural India, with respect to their ability to lead productive lives as adults.

From the said survey, it can be concluded that Ernakulam, in Kerala averages the best in terms of not only enrolment, i.e. in Std. XII or below, and Under Graduation, but also in other spheres of wholistic development such as digitalisation, financial calculation and participation, reading and comprehension, daily tasks including common calculation, ma reading and general knowledge, but lacks in provision and enrolment for vocational training ASER 2017 Full Report.

Thus, a comprehensive curriculum needs to be evolved where we prepare citizens for tomorrow’s real world needs, because the need of the day is an education to sustain ourselves and at the same time ensuring that we endure to the best of our abilities.