Rights panel asks education dept to enrol shelter home children in UP schools

National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) has directed the education department to ensure educational facilities for children in all shelter homes across the state.

So far, only informal education is imparted to children in shelter homes and they do not get any certificate or educational proof for this. “The informal education is being provided to these children but this is of no use,” said senior advisor, NCPCR, RK Gaur, in a letter to the directorate of basic education, Uttar Pradesh.

A few months back a child rights activist Naresh Paras had complained that children lodged in shelter homes are not getting formal education. “I had complained tom the panel that shelter home kids are getting only informal education and they have no access to regular schools. After the intervention of NCPCR, the local schools enrolled over a dozen children. Later, I urged the panel to make similar arrangement in other shelter homes,” Paras said.

Acting on the request, the rights panel on August 5 directed the department to identify children in each shelter home and enrol them in local schools. The commission has asked the basic education department to furnish details of children within 30 days or face action.

Uttar Pradesh has over 200 childcare institutions and around 100 do not have the space for educational activities. A mapping done by the centre's department of women and child development last year revealed that only 14% of shelter homes have more than two rooms for educational purpose while 38 have a single room.

An education department official said that some schools had enrolled the shelter home children. “There is no discrimination in enrolment. It is for the shelter homes to take a call,” he said.