Lok Sabha Question No. 713 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-11-29
Subject: Promotion of Girl’s Education
Ministry: WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: Shri Azad Kirti Jha

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 713

TO BE ANSWERED ON 29.11.2024

## PROMOTION OF GIRL'S EDUCATION

## 713.  SHRI AZAD KIRTI JHA:

Will the Minister of Women and Child Development be pleased to state:

- (a)    whether  any  State-level  initiatives/schemes  has  been  taken  to  promote  girls' education with a view to disincentivize child marriage, if so, the details thereof;
- (b)   the number of children working in the age group of 5-14 years during the last three decades, State-wise;
- (c) whether any State-level initiatives/schemes have been taken to bring down the incidence of child labour; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI SAVITRI THAKUR )

(a)  to  (d):  Department  of  School  Education  and  Literacy  (DoSEL),  Ministry  of Education implements the scheme of Samagra Shiksha, effective from 2018-19, for universalization of quality education throughout the country in coordination with the States  and  UTs.  It  is  an  overarching  programme  for  the  school  education  sector extending from pre-school to class XII and aims to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education at all levels of school education.

Bridging gender and social category gaps at all levels of school education is one of the  major  objectives  of  Samagra  Shiksha.  The  scheme  reaches  out  to  girls,  and children belonging to SC, ST, minority communities and transgender.

In order to ensure greater participation of girls in school education, under Samagra Shiksha, various interventions have been targeted, which include opening of schools in the neighbourhood to make access easier for girls, free uniform and text-books to girls  up  to  Class  VIII,  additional  teachers  and  residential  quarters  for  teachers  in remote/  hilly  areas,  appointment  of  additional  teachers  including  women  teachers, stipend  to  CWSN  girls  from  class  I  to  class  XII,  separate  toilet  for  girls,  teachers sensitization  programmes  to  promote  girls  participation,  gender-sensitive  teachinglearning materials including text books.

In addition, to reduce gender gaps at all levels of school education and ensure access and quality education to girls, under Samagra Shiksha, there is a provision of Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBVs) which are residential schools for girls from class VI to XII from age 10-18 years belonging to disadvantaged groups such as SC, ST, OBC, Minority and Below Poverty Line (BPL), sanctioned in Educationally Backward Blocks of the country.

Further NEP 2020 focuses on 'Equitable and Inclusive Education' which reverberates the idea that no child should be left behind in terms of educational opportunity because of their background and socio-cultural identities.

Ministry of Labour and  Employment (MoLE) has been using the data of 'Crime in India', published by  National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) with regard to report of cases registered under the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986. The report 'Crime in India' is available in public domain on website  i.e. ncrb.gov.in.

MoLE has taken a number of steps to prevent the children being employed as child labourers, and these include:-

- i. The  Child  and  Adolescent  Labour  (Prohibition  and  Regulation)  Act,  1986 provides for complete prohibition of work or employment of children below 14 years of age in any occupation and processes and prohibition of employment of adolescent in the age group of 14 to 18 years in hazardous occupations and processes. It also provides for stricter punishment for employers for violation of the  Act  and  made  the  offence  as  cognizable  and  rules  framed  thereunder, namely the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Rules, 1988.
- ii. To supplement the provision under the Act and rules thereunder, framing model State Action Plan enumerating action points to be taken by respective State Governments.
- iii. Further,  MoLE  was  implementing  National  Child  Lobour  Project  (NCLP) Scheme for rescue & rehabilitation of child labourers  under which the children in the age group of 9-14 years were rescued from work, enrolled in the NCLP Special Training Centers (STCs) and provided with bridge education etc. before being  mainstreamed  into  formal  education  system.  The  NCLP  scheme  has now, been subsumed with Samagara Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), a scheme of Department of School Education & Literacy under Ministry of Education with effect from 01.04.2021
- iv. Also,  to  ensure  effective  enforcement  of  the  provisions  of  the  Child  and Adolescent  Labour  (Prohibition  and  Regulation)  Act,  1986,  an  online  portal, namely 'Platform for Effective Enforcement for No Child Labour (PENCiL)' has been developed by the Government. The portal has five components namely, Central  Government,  State  Government,  District  Project  Societies,  Child Tracking System and complaint corner.

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