RIGHT
OF CHILDREN TO FREE AND COMPULSORY EDUCATION (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2017 THE RIGHT OF CHILDREN
TO FREE AND COMPULSORY EDUCATION (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2017 [Act No. 24 of 2017] [09th August, 2017] An Act further to
amend the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009. Be
it enacted by Parliament in the Sixty-eighth Year of the Republic ofIndia as
follows:- (1) This Act may be called the Right of Children to
Free and Compulsory Education (Amendment) Act, 2017. (2) It shall be deemed to have come into force on the
1st day of April, 2015. In
the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 (35 of 2009),
in section 23
Preamble - RIGHT OF CHILDREN TO FREE
AND COMPULSORY EDUCATION (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2017PREAMBLE
"Provided
further that every teacher appointed or in position as on the 31st March, 2015,
who does not possess minimum qualification laid down under sub-section (1),
shall acquire such minimum qualifications within a period of four years from
the date of commencement of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory
Education (Amendment) Act, 2017.".
Statement of Objects and Reasons -
RIGHT OF CHILDREN TO FREE AND COMPULSORY EDUCATION (AMENDMENT) BILL, 2017
STATEMENT OF OBJECTS
AND REASONS
(1) The crucial role of universal elementary education
for strengthening the social fabric of democracy through provision of equal
opportunities to all has been accepted since inception of our Republic. The
Directive Principles of State Policy enumerated in our Constitution lays down
that the State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children up
to the age of fourteen years.
(2) Pursuant to insertion of article 21A in the
Constitution by the Constitution (Eighty-sixth Amendment) Act, 2002, the Right
of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 was enacted to provide
for free and compulsory education to all children of the age of six to fourteen
years. The said Act came into force on the 1st April, 2010.
(3) Proviso to sub-section (2) of section 23 of the
said Act has stipulated a period of five years from the date of commencement of
the said Act, till the 31st March, 2015, as the deadline for a teacher who does
not possess minimum qualifications as laid down in sub-section (1) of the said
section, to acquire such minimum qualifications.
(4) In view of the above provisions, after completion
of the said period, the State Governments have not been able to continue the
training process for in-service untrained teachers. Hence, the State
Governments have requested for extension of the period for training untrained
teachers so as to enable them to initiate and complete the said training
process.
(5) Therefore, it is proposed to bring the Right of
Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Amendment) Bill, 2017 to insert a
new proviso to sub-section (2) of section 23 of the said Act, so as to provide
that every teacher appointed or in position as on 31st March, 2015, who does
not possess minimum qualifications as laid down under sub-section (1) of the
said section, shall acquire such minimum qualifications within a period of four
years on and from the date of commencement of the proposed legislation.
(6) The Bill seeks to achieve the above objective.