Education in rural India: Schools, children, and charity

After India gained independence in 1947, the first Educational Minister had a vision of a country with centralized governmental control over education, and with a uniform educational system available to all children. Today, an estimated 80% of all primary education facilities for pupils up to the age of14 are government run or sponsored. Unfortunately, a shortage of resources and declining enthusiasm from the government mean the system suffers.

The pupil to teacher ratios low in most areas, especially in India’s rural centers. The lack of a solid infrastructure for training teachers leaves 40% of educators untrained. Poor facilities and a general lack of resources make things even worse. Education for children up to 14 is free, and though it is compulsory, attendance is typically low.

In 1994 the District Primary Education Programme (DPEP) was launched. Under this scheme, more than 160,000 new schools were opened. The initiative was governmentally funded, but also received support from UNICEF. While gross enrollment has increased since the program was put into place, the quality of education has not.

In recent years, public expenditure on education has decreased, despite the poor state of the system and the ever-growing need for improvement. During the same period, private expenditure on education in India has grown exponentially. Much of this additional funding is coming from Indians themselves – out of pocket spending by the country’s working class population aimed at bettering the education of their children has increased 1150% during the last decade.

External funding sources also contribute to bettering the education system in India. Charitable organizations work hard to build new facilities and to improve old ones. For example, an organization called Round Table India, which has been operating since 1927, has declared one of their primary projects to be "Freedom through Education". Through this program, the organization works to build public schools in rural areas, and to provide desperately needed infrastructure and educational accessories like books and supplies.

Round Table India has initialized over 500 projects across India in recent years, spending hundreds of millions of Rupees to improve primary education. The charity often works in conjunction with other organizations around the world to accomplish their goals, overseeing donations and projects and working to help other parties participate in the betterment of education in India.

One of Round Table India’s partners is an organization called Chennai Event Management Services (CEMS), which adventure tourism services to companies around the world. CEMS runs events like the famous Rickshaw Challenge, which sees international teams of participants race across India in autorickshaws. Along the way, teams are encouraged to take part in local Round Table India projects by making donations to help build new schools, and by distributing supplies to existing schools.

Anyone who wishes to contribute to improving primary education in India can take part in an upcoming contest in which CEMS is giving away two free entries to the 2010 Mumbai Xpress Rickshaw Challenge, along with round-trip airfare to Chennai, India, and hotel accommodation for the duration of the event. This Rickshaw Slots Contest is being offered in conjunction with GamingZion; information on how to participate can be found on the Rickshaw Slots Contest page.