People's Democracy(Weekly Organ of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) |
Vol.
XXIX
No. 03 January 16, 2005 |
BY
March this year, no less than 64,000 Bengal primary schools would have mid-day
meal schedules for students. Announcing
this at the concluding function of the Vidyasagar mela in Kolkata on January 3,
state chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee also pointed out the fact that yet
10 lakh children of Bengal remained outside of institutional education.
By
2010, announced Buddhadeb, it would be quite possible to make all children of
school-going age attend schools. The
chief minister noted that poverty was preventing the guardians of these children
from getting their wards admitted in schools.
Mid-day meals, provided at the school premises, would be of great help in
this case.
Buddhadeb
noted that the figure of children not attending schools had stood at 19 lakh
even three years back. While the
figure has come down, there remained the fact that 8-10 per cent of school going
children tend to drop out at the primary level itself.
The mid-day scheme has enthused a large number of young children to
attend school and look to their studies.
In
Burdwan, Buddhadeb recalled, the people of the villages where the schools were
located, would come forward with rice and vegetables to organise the mid-day
meal sessions in schools. This is a very encouraging sign reflecting the
involvement of the people.
Buddhadeb
went on to say that despite the continuous enhancement of consciousness among
the people of Bengal, some worrying features continued to persist.
Marriages of minors have not disappeared totally from society.
This has given rise to more deaths during childbirth than would occur
normally, lamented the chief minister. The
evil institution of dowry, too, persists even among social groups who are
comparatively well off.
Against
these social evils, declared Buddhadeb, struggles and movements must be
organised where political parties as well as mass organisations must play a
meaningful role as organisers. He
also pointed to the success of the women’s self-help groups in the state.
Of the two lakh self-help groups operative, more than one lakh could
negotiate bank loans successfully.
Apart
from providing women with economic self-dependence, the groups helped enhance
and strengthen further their social and political consciousness, added Buddhadeb
who appealed to the Bangiya Saksharata Prasar Samity (BSPS), the organiser the
Vidyasagar mela to ensure that all members of the self-help groups became
literate. In the struggle against
capitalism and consumerist culture, the women can be a great and strong force.
The
BSPS’s working president and CPI(M) Polit Bureau member, Biman Basu said that
plans were already drawn up for implementation towards taking the literacy
campaign to the women members of the self-help groups. The BSPS and the state
resource centre shall work jointly in organising this task.
Survey work has reinforced the fact that making women literate ensures
that the next generation would not remain illiterate.