Structural Constraints in Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan Schools

Author(s): Nitya Rao

Source: Economic and Political Weekly , Apr. 18 - 24, 2009, Vol. 44, No. 16 (Apr. 18 - 24,
2009), pp. 17-20
Published by: Economic and Political Weekly

Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/40279149

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 = COMMENTARY

Structural Constraints in flexibilities, was not making much head-

way in a socially and economically differ-

Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan Schools

entiated context. The problem was not one
of implementation, but rather reflected a
perception of poor quality on the one
hand, and a lack of understanding of
NITYA RAO social relations and structural constraints
on the other.
A survey
the constitutional provision of
The village Sa
is a fairly large one, with
of reservations for scheduled
Abhiyan 330 households: schoo 176 Santal and Mohli
castes (ses) and scheduled tribes(sts), 94 Hindu (other backward classes
district of Jha
(sts), jobs reserved for them, especially (obcs)
at and dalit) and 60 Muslim house-
thathigher the
levels in ssa,
of public employment, andholds. A railway track divides the village d
on decentralisation and inbuilt professional occupations, continue to re-
into two parts: one side is inhabited by
flexibilities, is not making main vacant, while they remain concen-Hindus (who refer to this part as a sepa-
trated in casual work. This has led to rate Hindu village) and the other by the
much headway in a socially and
strong advocacy for improving basic edu-
sts and Muslims. The government middle
economically differentiated school is located at the centre of the Hindu
cation, particularly in the rural areas.
setting. This reflects a perception Building basic capabilities, it is expected,
tola, as are the government health centre,

of poor quality of the ssa and also will ultimately do away with the need for post office, local ration shops and tele-
reservations. In this context, the Sarva
phone booth. The other side of the village
a lack of understanding by the
Shiksha Abhiyan (ssa) was introduced in
has none of these facilities, the exception
programme of social relations and 2002 to universalise access to elementarybeing an anganwadi centre run by Inte-
structural constraints. education even in the remotest hamlets in grated Child Development Services.
India in order to give every child an equal The livelihood activities of these groups
educational opportunity. A further goal are also distinct. The Hindu obcs, includ-
is to bridge social, regional and gender ing caste groups such as the Telis, Sahs,
gaps, with the active participation of the Kumhars and Thakurs, reside by the road
community in the management of near the middle school. Most of them are
schools. The ssa framework, in thus literate, and while many continue with ac-
recognising education as a social institu- tivities associated with their castes, their
tion, focuses on critical dimensions of current livelihoods are geared towards
institutional reforms, community owner- salaried jobs in the government sector,
ship, capacity-building, role of teachersprimarily teaching, and also in sectors
and so on (http://education.nic.in/ssa/ like banking, insurance, petty contracts
ssa_i.asp accessed on 24/10/08). Yet its and journalism. The lower ranked obc
experience of dealing with social struc- groups along with the ses work as wage
tures or delivering quality education has labour, but in the past few years, also
been uneven. Jharkhand exemplifies a engage in trading in coal, either collected
state, where the ssa is still to overcome from non-working mines, or furtively
structural constraints in order to meet taken from the National Thermal Power
Corporation rail tracks. The Santals and
its goals of providing quality education
to children in the remotest hamlets of Mohlis (bamboo workers) own land, but
the country. with agriculture at subsistence levels, a
large majority migrate seasonally to the
A Village Study sugar cane fields of western Uttar
Pradesh, or the paddy fields or stone
I was recently in a village in Borio block,
Sahibganj district of Jharkhand, educa-crushers in West Bengal. The Muslim
tionally perhaps the most backward dis-groups are largely dependent on petty
trict in the state (total literacy rate of
trade, casual labour, migration to facto-
37%, female literacy 26%, and for stries in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh and sell-
females as low as 13% as per the 2001ing coal. Apart from a few upper ranked
Census). Sixty five per cent of the popula-obcs, a majority have insecure liveli-
Nitya Rao (n.rao@uea.ac.uk) is with the School tion of this block is categorised as st. Ithoods, moving in and out of the village
of Development Studies, University of East became obvious that the ssa, despite its when the need arises, characterising the
Anglia, United Kingdom.
emphasis on decentralisation and inbuiltvillage as largely poor.

Economic & Political weekly DBS3 april 18, 2009 vol xliv no 16 17

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 COMMENTARY =

Aone more in the Mohli tola, this time an

quick
educated Santal man. School buildings
vealed MANOHAR t
and infrastructure have been sanctioned.
ulation i
There has clearly been an emphasis on
pleted s
GANITASARAKAUMUDI
1%improving access and creatinggradthe requi-
The Moonlight of the Essence of
site infrastructure to facilitate learning.
ever, hu
Mathematics by Thakkura Pheru
Mid-day meals are also provided to the
literacy
Edited with Introduction, Translation, and
men, to
nps. In terms of academic support, a clus- Mathematical Commentary by SaKHYa
a ter resource centre (crc) has been con-
dismal 978-81-7304-809-8, 2009, 328p. Rs. 995
structed in the middle school complex
extent,
the (upgraded in 2007 to a high school)
phys and DAROJI VALLEY

lem for both the Santal and the Muslim an academic in-charge appointed in Landscape History, Place, and the
children is the existence of the railway November 2005 to support teachers, Making of a Dryland Reservoir System
Kathleen D. Morrison
track separating their hamlets from the especially in maths and science. Progress
978-81-7304-779-4, 2009, 316p. Rs. 1895
school, and while the train comes only has been made: primary schools have
four to five times a day, this is still a risk been set up in each of the hamlets and PERFORMING ECSTASY
and a reason for poor attendance. better infrastructure provided alongside The Poetics and Politics of Religion
in India
Table 1; Literacy Levels by Ethnicity (Population six years and above)
Pallabi Chakravorty and Scott Kugle
978-81-7304-814-2, 2009, 256p. Rs. 650
Illiterate

Primary (1-5) THE INFINITE STORY

Middle (6-8)
The Past and Present of The

Secondary (9-10)
Ramayanas in Hindi
Danuta Stastic
Intermediate (11-12)

978-81-7304-815-9, 2009, 319p. Rs. 995

Graduation (13-15)

Postgraduation (16-17)
THE PURANIC WORLD
Not answered
Environment, Gender, Ritual and Myth
Total
Vijay Nath
Figures in 978-81-7304-801-2,
brackets are 2009, 310p.
perceRs. 775
Source: Village survey (2006).

INVISIBLE WOMEN, VISIBLE

Table 2a: Enrolments in t
attention to quality through the provision HISTORIES
(Grades 1-8)
Caste/Ethnicity Male Female Total of academic support. Gender, Society and Polity in North
India

Harijan(SC) 11 5,9 6 20 11 A Comparison (Seventh to Twelfth Century AD)

Devika Rangachari
Adivasi(ST) 56 84 68 38 162 122 Unfortunately this is not the reality. A
978-81-7304-808-1, 2009, 530p. Rs. 1295
OBC (Hindus) 117 114 100 91 217 205 comparison between the three schools is
Muslim
disturbing. It points to the setting up of BREAKING BOUNDARIES WITH THE
Total
differential standards and norms for dif- GODDESS
Source: Information from school (2006, 2008).
ferent types of schools, and consequently, New Directions in the Study of
With the launching of the
to enhancing inequalities ssa
even within the in Saktism

November 2002, the first

state education priority
system of the
in a single locality. Cynthia Ann Humes and
government was to The
resolve the problem
government middle school, located Rachel
of Fell McDermott (eds)
81-7304-760-2, 2009, 386p. Rs. 995
access. Abhiyan schools were
in the Hindu tola, therefore
has eight regular tea-
set up, one each in the Muslim and Mohli
chers, four pucca buildings, a handpump, BHAKTI MOVEMENT IN MEDIEVAL
tolas (adjoining toilets,
the and Santal
a computer room,tola).
though the One INDIA
para-teacher waslackappointed to
of electricity has made this eachSocial
non-func- of and Political Perspectives
these schools: a local educated Muslim tional. All st and sc children receive free Shahabuddin Iraqi
youth in the former, and in the absence oftextbooks, albeit late, and a scholarship to 978-81-7304-800-5, 2009, 289p. Rs. 725
a suitably educated st youth an educated cover their costs, sc/st girls in Grade 8 are
Hindu obc in the latter. As the number of given bicycles by the Jharkhand education
for our complete catalogue please write to us at:
children increased, both schools were department to encourage them to continue
upgraded to primary schools in June with their studies. Most of the educated in
2006, and are now listed as new primarythe village have had their basic education
schools (nps). Two additional teachers in this school. Table 2a provides enrolment
were appointed in the Muslim tola and figures for 2006 and 2008. What is

1° April 18, 2009 vol xliv no 16 CEE9 Economic & Political weekly

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 =====

Table 2b; Enrolments in the Two NPS (2008) schools receive no state aid. While st chil- not eligible for scholarships. As already
Caste/Ethnicity Muslim Tola NPS Mohli Tola NPS
dren are entitled to scholarships in gov-mentioned, the majority of sts, though
ernment schools, they do not receive themowning land, are extremely poor; this is
Harijan (SC)

in the mission schools many of which lackone reason that children often go to work
state recognition in the first instance, norrather than to school. When enrolled in
Ad iy as[(ST)

OBC (Hindus) - - - 2 5 7
Muslim 62 57 119 do they get mid-day meals. While the the middle school, these children re-
Total
meals are important, they do not compen-ceived scholarships; they are now neither
Source: School sate for
information the lack of quality education evenentitled to be enrolled in the middle
(2008)

in a poor hamlet such as this. school, nor entitled to scholarships in

understandable is the decline in the num- When I discussed the problem with thetheir own school.
bers of Muslim and st children, explained headmistress of the middle school, a San- Second, as per official notification, the
partly by the fact that they now have tal herself, she clarified that since the newnps are only ever entitled to have para-
schools in their own hamlets, with consid- schools have been upgraded to primaryteachers. Though young, local and better
erably higher enrolments. What is disturb- schools, they each have a clearly demar-educated, they remain contract workers,
ing is that none of the Muslim children cated catchment area, and she cannot with low salaries of Rs 3,000 per month
seem to have entered middle school fol- therefore give admission to children livingand while sincere about teaching, are
lowing the completion of primary level. in the catchment area of the Mohli school. pushed to finding supplementary sources
She admitted that those who could afford of income. At best they teach for half a
Contrasting Pictures sent their children to mission or privateday. There has been considerable mobili-
The visits to the two new schools, how-schools, but the rest remained out of sation of para-teachers in Jharkhand over
ever, have brought out contrastingschool. The single teacher of this school the last two years and negotiations with
pictures. While the school in the Muslimexplained the difficulties he faced in termsthe government, yet the new guidelines
tola now has a pucca building, three of lack of infrastructure, lack of scholar- for para-teachers are disappointing. Wages
teachers, all local Muslim youth, a func-
ships, and the attitude of the parents, whocan be increased to Rs 5,100 per month,
tioning balwadi centre for three to six yearpreferred to send their children to work or subject to certain conditions. Most
olds and a regular provision of mid-day graze cattle than to school. This tends toimportant is a clause stating that they
a an easy escape route, blaming st par- can never claim régularisation as a
meals, the school in the Mohli tola was be
complete contrast. The building is yetents for their lack of interest in the educa- government employee. Bihar, on the con-
tion of their children, while clearly, astrary, has announced régularisation of all
unfinished, the school is still running in
the veranda of the hut of the chairpersonillustrated above, this is not the case. Inpara-teachers till the age of 60, a salary of
of the village education committee (vec).
fact, during the year 2006-07, when thereRs 5,000 per month, with an increment of
The school has only one teacher, a Hinduwas a Santal teacher, the attendance was Rs 500 per month every three years. This
obc, who rarely comes. In the words of
high. He said, at least gives some motivation for work,
the chairman, though the inequality with the regular
I am more qualified than the present teach-
I have called him many times, but he does er, yet could not represent myself, hence was
teachers, often only matriculation pass,
not come. The school hasn't opened for the appointed only as a helper in this school on abut earning three times this amount, is
last three months. He says he has to go to the 10-year contract and a salary of Rs 2,000 perglaring. Teacher motivation is clearly cen-
bank, or to a meeting or file a report. While month. I have to support my family and this tral to improving educational quality, and
officially, there are 75 children enrolled, is totally insufficient, but without money tothis seems the weakest link.
there are no studies here, about 20-25 go to pay bribes I am unable to get a job.
Apart from monetary payments, the
private and mission schools. I send my three
children to the Pathra Mission School. It is Yet, he worked hard in the school, en-other intervention for improving quality
expensive, costing almost Rs 4,000 per year couraging all children to study, explainingwas the setting up of the cluster, block and
for each child, but what is the alternative? things to them in Santali, till he left indistrict resource centres. The cluster in-
This state of affairs was confirmed by October 2007, to a job as gram sevak charge is meant to conduct fortnightly
many others. As it turned out, the major responsible for the implementation of themeetings at the crc, once with the head-
cash expenditures incurred by them are National Rural Employment Guaranteeteachers and once with assistant tea-
on healthcare and education. FourteenProgramme in an adjacent block. Thoughchers on improving the subject matter
still on contract, this brings him a slightlybeing taught, alongside visiting the
children study at the St Paul's Mission
better salary.
School at Pathra, perhaps five to six kms schools in the cluster by rotation. He ad-
away from the village, and an equal mitted, however, that due to a tremen-
Conclusions
number at the Holy Cross Mission School dous load of reporting work, he has little
at Balidih. Most of these children com- timere-
There are two important issues here, for academic advice.
mute daily, walking for more than an hourflecting discriminatory practices in rela-
As one of the villagers asked me, "de-
each way, yet parents find it worthwhiletion to both the children and the teachers.
spite so much investment, why is state
education not succeeding, while private
for the learning it provides. Fees are high,First, while the nps now have permanent
Rs 400 to Rs 500 per month as these infrastructure, the children in the nps and are
mission schools do not seem to have

Economic & Political weekly EBE3 april 18, 2009 vol xliv no 16 19

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 COMMENTARY =

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corruption of every civic body in the meta-

Spe phoric town of Baltimore. Like everywhere

in the us, "Baltimore" is a place where the
and the National Sublime economy makes nothing but still manages
to make money. It does so by extracting
profits out of the zombie-like fiends who
TANI BARLOW trade in dope and fuel the brutal world
where revenue streams come because

year Barack Obama told a re- is

What Ba
"everyone's got their hand in the other

all porter that his favourite television guy's pocket". Corruption and betrayal
about? are
T
show was The Wire. He said his the norm, just like the Clinton capitalism
that Obama
favourite character was Omar, the gangsta
of The Sopranos or The Godfather from the
Americans Nixon era. As in the earlier versions, The
who robs local drug gangs and redistrib-
American and has trained himself Wire shows how the social logic of the
utes the take in the Baltimore Maryland
neighbourhood where the story is set.
in the oratorial traditions of the drug gangs infects civic life as much as the
Obama gave this interview during the
government. The docks and the bars of a
"national sublime", the language
now out-sourced and vacated space that
campaign, and since then much has been
of mainstream American politics made of Obama's fondness for the gayonce sheltered the white ethnic working
silenced during the Bush era. hoodlum Omar (http://featuresblogs.
class are prime real estate for upper mid-
chicagotribune.com/entertainment_
dle class "work live lofts" and boutiques. A
tv/2008/oi/barack-obama-on.html). But I and murderous thug, Omar lives the
gay
tend to think that Obama may love the
latest nationalist parable where the gangs-
tas morph a new version of the game
drama because of its longing for redemp-
around the best efforts of the imperfect
tion and its loving satire of a national be-
"po-leece" to stop them. But it does not
lief that raw energy and brutal talent can
be harnessed and may be regulated into work.
a Time after time gangsters overdos-
form that can deliver abundance to all ing
of on cash fail to stabilise their markets.
Shit is always happening, and things are
god's children. Decadence in the street
always falling apart as the phosphoric
and justice on the mountain top is what
blaze of drug money lights up the land-
Omar speaks in his virtually incompre-
hensible Baltimore street patois. (I am
scape in yet another brutal collapse.
surely not the only middle class viewer
National Parable
who puts the dvd subtitles on from time to
time.) But the point is that Obama does
The Wire is great for many reasons but an
not speak Omar's dialect: Barack speaks
important one is that it is a good American
the national sublime. story that could also be good for the rest of
Omar lives in a zero sum game butthe
is planet to hear. Sure, it is a national
not part of it, because his whole point isparable
to and so it is nationalist. And yes,
this longing for redemption goes with the
get some justice done. Eerily, the game the
players play in The Wire is the us financelong-standing infatuation of the American
capital bubble that burst last October. Itmass
is media with law and order. But The
A historian of modern China, Tani Barlow eerie because the show ended before the Wire is American in a way that matters to
(barlow.tani@gmail.com) is at the Chao Center bubble burst. But the five-year hbo tv me and I think it matters in the same way to
for Asian Studies at Rice University in Houston,
saga looked at the bubble economy from Obama. Which is why Zadie Smith's "Spea-
Texas, United States.
the perspective of the drug trade and its king in Tongues" (originally a December

20 April 18, 2009 vol xliv no 16 13229 Economic & Political weekly

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