Articles

Article 21  

Article 21 as the procedural Magna Carta protective of life and liberty.

Article 21 secures two rights:

1)  Right to life

2) Right to personal liberty.

Article 21A

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. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, which represents the consequential legislation envisaged under Article 21-A means that every child has a right to full-time elementary education of satisfactory and equitable quality in the formal school which satisfies certain essential norms and standards.

Article 14

Article 14 of the  Constitution of India provides for equality before the law or equal protection of the laws within the  territory of India It states:

"The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India.

Article 15

 A fundamental right prohibits discrimination by the state against any citizen on grounds 'only' of religion, caste, race, sex, and place of birth. 

Article 30

  Right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions

All minorities, whether based on religion or language, shall have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice

 In making any law providing for the compulsory acquisition of any property of the educational institution established and administered by a minority, referred to in clause ( 1 ), the State shall ensure that the amount fixed by or determined under such law for the acquisition of such property is such as would not restrict or abrogate the right guaranteed under that clause

 The state shall not, in granting aid to educational institutions, discriminate against any educational the institution on the ground that it is under the management of a minority, whether based on religion or language

Article 45

Provision for free and compulsory education for children. The State shall endeavour to provide, within a period of ten years from the commencement of this Constitution, for free and compulsory education for all children, until they complete the age of fourteen years

Article 46

Promotion of educational and economic interests of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and other weaker sections The State shall promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections of the people, and, in particular, of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, and shall protect them from social injustice and all forms of exploitation

Article 41 

The State should within the limits of its economic capacity and development; make effective provision for securing the right to work, to education and to public assistance in case of unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement

Article 51A

51A. Fundamental duties

 It shall be the duty of every citizen of India

 (a) to abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem;

(b) to cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle for freedom;

(c) to uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India;

(d) to defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so;

(e) to promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women;

(f) to value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture;

(g) to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife, and to have compassion for living creatures;

(h) to develop the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform;

(i) to safeguard public property and to abjure violence;

(j) to strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective activity so that the nation constantly rises to higher levels of endeavour and achievement

Article 350A

It shall be the endeavour of every State and of every local authority within the State to provide adequate facilities for instruction in the mother-tongue at the primary stage of education to children belonging to linguistic minority groups; and the President may issue such directions to any State as he considers necessary or proper for securing the provision of such facilities.

Article 351

Promotion of Hindi Language

It states that- 

” It shall be the duty of the Union to promote the spread of the Hindi language, to develop it so that it may serve as a medium of expression for all the elements of the composite culture of India and secure its enrichment by assimilating without interfering with its genius, the forms, style and expressions used in Hindustani and in the other languages of India specified in the Eighth Schedule, and by drawing, wherever necessary or desirable, for its vocabulary, primarily on Sanskrit and secondarily on other languages ”  

Right to Education Act RTE Act 2009

The Right to Education Act 2009, also known as the RTE Act 2009, was enacted by the Parliament of India on 4 August 2009. It describes modalities of the importance of free and compulsory education for children aged between 6-14 years in India under Article 21 (A) of the Constitution of India.

1. Compulsory and free education for all

It is obligatory for the Government to provide free and compulsory elementary education to each and every child, in a neighbourhood school within 1 km, up to class 8 in India. No child is liable to pay fees or any other charges that may prevent him or her from pursuing and completing elementary education. Free education also includes the provisions of textbooks, uniforms, stationery items and special educational material for children with disabilities in order to reduce the burden of school expenses.

2. The benchmark mandate

The Right to Education Act lays down norms and standards relating to Pupil-Teacher-Ratios (number of children per teacher), classrooms, separate toilets for girls and boys, drinking water facility, number of school-working days, working hours of teachers, etc. Each and every elementary school (Primary school + Middle School) in India has to comply with these set of norms to maintain a minimum standard set by the Right to Education Act.

3. Special provisions for special cases

The Right to Education Act mandates that an out of school child should be admitted to an age-appropriate class and provided with special training to enable the child to come up to age-appropriate learning level.

4. Quantity and quality of teachers

The Right to Education Act provides for rational deployment of teachers by ensuring that the specified Pupil-Teacher-Ratio is maintained in every school with no urban-rural imbalance whatsoever. It also mandates appointing appropriately trained teachers i.e. teachers with the requisite entry and academic qualifications.

5. Zero tolerance against discrimination and harassment

The Right to Education Act 2009 prohibits all kinds of physical punishment and mental harassment, discrimination based on gender, caste, class and religion, screening procedures for admission of children capitation fee, private tuition centres, and functioning of unrecognised schools.

6. Ensuring all round development of children

The Right to Education Act 2009 provides for the development of the curriculum, which would ensure the all-round development of every child. Build a child’s knowledge, human potential and talent.

7. Improving learning outcomes to minimise detention

The Right to Education Act mandates that no child can be held back or expelled from school till Class VIII. To improve the performances of children in schools, the Right to Education Act introduced the Continuous Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) the system in 2009 to ensure grade-appropriate learning outcomes in schools. 

8. Monitoring compliance of RTE norms

School Management Committees (SMCs) play a crucial role in strengthening participatory democracy and governance in elementary education. All schools covered under the Right to Education Act 2009 are obligated to constitute a School Management Committee comprising of a headteacher, local elected representative, parents, community members etc. The committees have been empowered to monitor the functioning of schools and to prepare the school development plan.

9. Right to Education Act is justiciable

The Right to Education Act is justiciable and is backed by a Grievance Redressal (GR) the mechanism that allows people to take action against non-compliance of provisions of the Right to Education Act 2009.

10. Creating inclusive spaces for all

The Right to Education Act 2009 mandates for all private schools to reserve 25 per cent of their seats for children belonging to socially disadvantaged and economically weaker sections. This provision of the Act is aimed at boosting social inclusion to provide for a more just and equal nation.