MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT (DR. SHASHI THAROOR)
(a) to (c) The Government has been addressing the emerging challenges in the education sector at the primary and secondary levels by aligning existing schemes and introducing new ones. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009 came into force from 01.04.2010 and mandates free and compulsory education for all children in the age group of 6-14 years, including children in rural areas.
The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) programme which is the main vehicle for meeting the objectives of the RTE Act, 2009 has been aligned with provisions of the Act. The SSA supports provisions of school infrastructure, additional teachers, free textbooks, free uniforms etc. As many as 85.99% of the elementary schools as per the District Information System for Education (DISE) 2011-12 are in rural areas. In the 11th Plan Rs.77408.80 crore were released as the central share to the States/UTs under the SSA.
The Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) was launched in March, 2009 to enhance access to secondary education and improve its quality. The RMSA supports States/UTs in providing physical infrastructure, including buildings, toilets, drinking water facilities, libraries, laboratories etc. as well as providing teacher posts. A total of Rs.4530.89 crore of central funds has been released to the States under the RMSA in the 11th Five Year Plan.
All the States/UTs Governments are implementing the SSA and the RMSA as partners of the Central Government.
