---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Chintan Excerpts from http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Postcards-from-kids-converted-into-PIL/articleshow/6169476.cms
*Postcards from kids converted into PIL* Tired of their complaints falling on deaf ears, nearly 200 children from government and MCD schools in the city have now taken on themselves the task of setting the education system right. The children wrote to the chief justice of Delhi High Court once in May and again on Monday highlighting the abysmal state of their schools and the need to implement right to education. Their efforts haven't gone waste. On Wednesday, chief justice Dipak Misra converted the complaints into a PIL and sought a response from Delhi government and MCD, terming it a "serious matter". >From teachers beating them up and forcing them to collect garbage, to toilets remaining locked and clean drinking water being inaccessible, the children had a lot to write about. Shahnaaz Khatoon, a class VIII student of Rani Channama Rajkiya Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya in Jahangirpuri, wrote, "Madam padai ke samay phone pe baat karti rehti hai (The teacher keeps talking on phone during class)." She all said that water in the tank of her school had not been cleaned for 8-10 days. She added, however, that the playground in the school was good. Poonam, a class IV at MCD school in Jahangirpuri, B-Block, wrote, "Our madam is good and she even teaches us. But our principal often beats us and makes us pick garbage. Please take appropriate action." A few even complained that the teachers discouraged them from asking questions and the classes were often conducted on the playground. Many of them even left their phone numbers on the postcard for further clarification. Shahnaz said, "The toilet in our school is seldom cleaned. Even the food that we get in school (midday meal) is often too little and does not taste good. We have complained about this to many people several times but nothing happened. Then someone told us that writing to the chief justice could help." According to Ashok Agarwal, founder of Social Jurist, "We asked children to write their top three problems and also the good things about their school. We told them to write only what they felt and not ask or copy from anyone else." -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "humanrights movement" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/humanrights-movement?hl=en.
