http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/india/8702382/Poor-Indian-pupils-tagged-in-smart-private-schools.htmlPoor Indian pupils tagged in smart private schoolsPoor and low-caste 'quota' children are being 'tagged' and segregated at Indian private schools, child rights campaigners have claimed. [image: Dean Nelson] <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/journalists/dean-nelson/>
By Dean Nelson <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/journalists/dean-nelson/>, New Delhi 9:05PM BST 15 Aug 2011 The *Indian* <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/india/> children's charity Padarshita said it had received a series of complaints from parents of poor children admitted to smart private schools under new government rules to boost 'social inclusion.' Ten per cent of all places must be given free to children from the 'economically weaker sections.' But according to the charity, nursery age and primary schoolchildren are being kept in separate classrooms from fee-paying pupils, forced to sit on the floor and barred from using the school lavatories. At one school, quota children have had the word "freeship" written on their shirt collars to identify them. Twenty-five children were admitted to St Andrews Scots School in New Delhi under the scheme earlier this year, but their parents later complained they were being discriminated against and stigmatised for being poor. Many of the parents are casual daily labourers earning less than £3 per day. A spokesman for Delhi's Commission for Protection of Child Rights said any segregation or branding of children according to their family's wealth would be illegal. The complaints are under investigation, he said. Ritu Mehra of Pardarshita said parents were forced to lodge a 'Right to Information' case to have their complaints investigated. Several parents dropped their complaints because they feared their children's places would be jeopardised, she said. _______________________________________________ assam mailing list [email protected] http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
