Abstract

It is pertinent that the present Government effort to evolve a framework of a new education policy which is relevant to our context and time, has to confront with the reality of inaccessibility and exclusion of tribal children from quality education observed in the remote tribal area schools. The real challenge for a contextually evolved relevant framework of education comes from the empirical reality of children belonging to socio-economically backward, the Dalits and Tribal/Adivasis, the rural and village sections of our society. In this backdrop, this paper argues for strengthening the responsibility of state on education of tribal/adivasi children based on the experience of ashramsalas in Maharashtra and council schools of Hill districts of Manipur.

Introduction

Going by the observations of the present field data of council schools of Hill districts in Manipur (Leivon, 2012) and Ashram Schools in Maharashtra (Jojo, 2011 and 2015), tribal children are out of the purview of Right to Education Act, 2009 and the Right to Life as enshrined in the Constitution article 21. The subclause A of the article 21 recognises education as fundamental aspect of Constitutional provision of Right to Life. Therefore, the probability of exclusion of tribal children in council and ashram schools from access to quality education as indicated in the study reports poses a serious educational concern which needs to be addressed at the policy and education system. This issue should give a direction and purpose to the proposed new education policy. The policy should take note of the situation of tribal children; a complex and dynamic reality – socio-economic, caste, cultural and political in nature. It is therefore pertinent to note that the present Government effort to evolve a framework of a new education policy which is relevant to our context and time, has to confront with the reality of inaccessibility and exclusion of tribal children from quality education observed in the remote Ashram and district council Schools. The real challenge of a contextually evolved relevant framework of education comes from the empirical reality of children belonging to socio-economically backward, the dalits and Tribal/Adivasis, the rural and village sections of our society. This is directly connected to the Constitutional commitment of social justice, equality and equity.

The national commitment to making quality education accessible to all children, tribal children in particular is a matter of justice and equity. So far, the outcome of this commitment can be inferred from a cursory glance of the national census survey data on literacy (58.96 against 72.99), enrolment and drop-out rates. In all of these indicators, children belonging to Scheduled Tribes are outstanding as substantiated by the specific local based studies. In particular, the outcome Study Report 2008 (published in 2011 as an article in Indian Journal of Social Work) identifies a ‘problem tree’ indicating the cause of present success rate. It states that even though the Government has made various attempts to improve the situation from time to time, the problem continues. In fact, it reports that the Government seems to be taking responsibility of education of tribal children through Ashram Schools but also raises deeper questions that pertain to nature/perspective of policy, implementation and its efficacy. Moreover, this question also finds a resonance across tribal areas as indicated in the low literacy, low enrolment and high dropout rate of tribal children across the Adivasi areas, Fifth Scheduled Areas in particular. Leivon (2012), underlines the specific issue of accessibility in Hill districts of Manipur. This question becomes intensely relevant for discussion in the present context where the reality of development induced displacement, disconnect and dispossession are increasingly being discussed and highlighted across the Adivasi regions. In this backdrop, one is left with no option but to conclude that the state seems to be withdrawing in the tribal areas in its responsibility for the welfare, protection and development but increasing its presence when it comes to the question of national growth and development, somewhat constructing a situation of national development versus the tribal development. In fact, the High Level Committee Report, 2014 (p. 154) emphasises that “The overarching principle of universal free compulsory education enshrined in Article 45 and Article 46 of the Constitution of India enjoins upon the Indian State the responsibility of taking ‘special care’ of educational interests of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.” In the light of this Constitutional commitment, it needs to be reiterated that the issue faced by the tribal children falls within the responsibility of the centre and the state governments. Towards this, building a context specific perspective on education, Government’s commitment, financial allocation and building of manpower become important components of building an efficient and effective education system, a system where governance process will be marked by transparency and accountability, participation and people’s ownership. The Ministry of Tribal Affairs at the centre and Departments of Tribal Developments, in particular being the nodal agencies are accountable to the well functioning of education system when it comes to the tribal areas. They are governed by the Constitutional provisions and Right to Education Act and have institutional mandate of bringing inter/intra ministerial and departmental convergence and synergy towards effective realization of the Constitutional commitment. In such a backdrop, the reality presented by the Study Reports is revealing of the concrete conditions of schools for tribal children. This should inform the proposed new education policy so that education of tribal children comes as a matter of right.

Council and Ashram Schools; Concept and Approach

The idea of education etymologically, is rooted in Latin terms ‘educatum’ which means ‘the act of training or teaching’, ‘educare’ which means ‘to bring up or to nourish’ and ‘educere’ meaning ‘to lead out or to draw out’. In the Webster Dictionary, education refers to “development of the faculties and powers (of a person) through teaching, instruction or schooling.” This term is related to ‘pedagogy’. Pedagogy is a Greek term referring to ‘leading a child’ in its basic sense. During this time, these concepts were restricted to tutoring of children of rich and powerful in the society. However, in the 18^th century enlightenment period in western context, in particular, these concepts became closely linked to the idea of modernity. In fact, pedagogy in education for the first time came to be referred to as methods and strategies of education for the education of children. Education in this period became an important institution and a process for civilization, socialization, and solidarity in which education was considered as an institution of society that shapes individuals and agencies to the social goals, norms and functions. It played vital role in a process of cultural reproduction to establish equilibrium in society. However, the specific aims and purpose of the education can vary to great extend depending on the context and the theoretical approach from where it is viewed. For the purpose of this paper, three important aspects of education are outlined to give direction to the understanding of education for tribal children (also cited in Khora, 2011).

(i) First: There are two basic orientations of education namely, liberal and technical. The liberal orientation assumes that education should be pursued for the sake of achieving certain values in life. This orientation is an outcome of the scientific revolution that led to the establishment of modern education. The scientific revolution, situated the importance of reason, individual freedom, and personal growth and maturity as a move away from the earlier feudal and monarchical idea of self and individual. It gave rise to idea of human agency and growth. In this backdrop, education is conceived to generate individual agency and liberty. This model of education can be related with pursuit of knowledge for full human maturity. The ideas of Rabindranath Tagore and Krishnmurti have aspects of liberal orientation. While, technical orientation focuses on preparing individuals to the daily experience. It emphasizes the learning and growth closely linked to the daily activities livelihood knowledge and skills. In this, context specific education that brings overall growth and development. This idea has been advocated by various educational thinkers of our country including Vivekananda, Radhakrishna, Zakir Hussain and Gandhi. In particular, idea of education by Gandhiji has direct relation to technical model of education. Work and livelihood activities are fundamental part of this education. Education should be contextualised where the students should learn work activities that would prepare him for his life. This is generally referred to us Naitalim(Vinoba, 2010). In fact, residential or Ashram schools for Tribal Children are conceptualised on this principle. In the backdrop of stated orientations, education further viewed from two orientations namely as a) foundational and constitutive, b) instrumental. In social sense, education is foundational and constitutive of the society where education is an important institution of the society. While, instrumentalization of education is to great extend shaped by market. In this, education should be a process for getting job and employment. Education should prepare every individual with knowledge and skills that would get them job and employment. However, John Dewey’s idea of education moved further from the binary frame of liberal-technical or intellectual-practical, and culture-vocation. Dewey advocated basic liberal education and technical education for all (Dewey, 1916 as cited in Khora, 2011, p. 3).

(ii) Second: The liberal orientation to education gave rise to question of values. It generated a value concern for human beings as a whole. This has roots to the emergence of knowledge that situates centrality of humanity and values. It derives from the debate that inquires on the values that should be inculcated to create a good society. In this, human values are identified as imperative for creating good society. This idea is influenced by 17^th century educationist like John Amos Comenius. Comenious aimed to develop ‘a grand teaching method of all things to all men’ through faith and reverence, moral uprightness and knowledge of language and art in that order. He became champion of universal education for all and rightly considered the father of modern education. While Locke considered ‘balanced vision’ as the educational goal by rising above tradition and enthusiasm, Herbert emphasised inculcation of many sided interest with inner freedom, perfection, goodwill, idea of rights and equality. Zakir Hussain gives value to inquisitiveness and humility in education by pointing out five criteria of an educated person. Tagore’s aim is to pursue the infinite, Radhakrishnan’s aim is to be humane and for Vivekananda it is to understand human suffering by facing it. Thus, the important values arrived at from the various educational aims above are equality, sympathy, perseverance, spirituality, morality and an open mind to learn.

(iii) Third: The indigenous orientation to education emerged in the historical circumstances of British colonialism in the region. Colonialism defined indigeniety and the struggle of the people against the colonial system. Indigenous orientation to education in Indian context emerged as an outcome of the resistance against the British company rule in India. Indian thinkers like Gandhi, Aurobindo and Vivekananda desired education in India to be based on ‘educational swaraj’ against the British model of education. It argued for vernacular and the local based education system. In this, there is an imperative for education to be rooted in their history, society, economy and their needs. In the context of tribes, indigenous orientation to education refers to education system that is tuned to the local context of tribes (Kundu, 2003 and Tripura, 2014). Education should reflect the question of cultural assimilation, geographical isolation and marginalization. It has aims for social and political empowerment at the local specific level against the likelihood of cultural and political assimilation and domination.

In the policy of the Government, education among Scheduled Tribes has to be grounded on the reality of tribal children, where the idea of education engenders social and economic upliftment of tribal children and peoples through pragmatic residential education system. This is built on the historical background of the emergence of the urban, city and towns (aspects of modernity) where tribal children are likely to become peripheries and marginalised socially, publicly, culturally and economically. The villages, families and worldviews could get disconnected and displaced in the political economy of development. They are likely to be out of the purview of modern amenities such as road connectivity, electricity and other public services. Over and above, a situation of poverty, illness and ignorance in the villages will hinder accessibility to modern education system. In this backdrop, Council (name Basic Schools) and Ashram schools were initiated to make possible accessibility to education for the tribal children in their own villages and management by the local government body. It was envisioned to create conducive institution and environment of learning where children’s learning and growth is not compromised by external and internal challenging circumstances. It is opined that tribal children in the council schools should be taken special care by the Government. The first report on Scheduled Tribe education which made affirmative statement on the nature of schools in tribal areas along this line was made by the Dhebar Commission in 1961. The statement of this report is definitely in congruent with the policy frame of Scheduled Tribes where it is stated that they should join the mainstream in their own genius, as inspired by the Nehru’s policy for tribal integration. In practice, two models can be identified representing the tribal areas in Manipur and Maharashtra;

a) Council Schools in Hill District of Manipur

The Council School comes under the purview central scheme under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. The Government made commitment to provide schools for Scheduled Tribes in an environment conducive to learning in order to increase the literacy rate among the tribal students and to bring them at par with other population of the country” (as stated in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs). One of the salient features of the scheme states that, “Under the revised scheme, State Governments are eligible for 100 % funding for the establishment of Council Schools in the light of Ashram Schools of the Peninsular region where free residential schools where provided to tribal children.”

In this context, the idea of education or formal education is conceptualised and operationalised within the Constitutional commitment and Government’s initiative for the upliftment of children socially, economically and educationally as indicated in article 45 and 46 of the Constitution. In fact, in such a context, this arrangement becomes very crucial for the tribal areas as Central Government Schemes are instituted to cater to the specific situations. As observed in the hill districts of Manipur, council schools or the village schools are able to provide conducive environment for education of tribal children and their contribution to bringing accessibility of education can hardly be exaggerated. At present, every recognised tribal village in hill has council school. These schools are under managed by the local government bodies under District Council Act, 1971 (amended in 2008). The schools were envisioned to address to specific areas where the general system of education was unable to handle adequately in terms of funding, establishment and management. The recognition of Scheduled Areas in the state provided the administrative system for education.

With the formation of the state, council schools were established through the District Council Act, 1971 (amended in 2008) towards the national commitment on education for all the children in the country. In principle, the legislation has the intention of making the village schools an integral part of the village unity. The management of village schools is differentiated from the general management of the education system in the state within the broad Constitutional framework of decentralization. Here, the school education system in general is placed under the Directorate of Education (Hill section) and the primary education in particular is placed under the district council. Therefore, all village schools are managed under the district council. However, the experience of the tribal children of the council schools indicates that council schools have not fully become part of the village. In fact, village involvement in the management of the children’s education within the wall of the council schools seems to be minimal. People no longer have much faith in the Government schools. The contemporary situation is that most of the council schools are left with individual school teachers who run the school at their own comfort and convenience. The incapability of the council schools to attract more students is an indication that council schools in the present situation do not have any impact on the educational status of the village.

b) Ashram Schools

The Ashram Schools is a central scheme under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. The main objective of the Ashram School is “to provide residential schools for Scheduled Tribes including PTGs in an environment conducive to learning to increase the literacy rate among the tribal students and to bring them at par with other population of the country”(as stated in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs). One of the salient features of the scheme states that, “Under the revised scheme, State Governments are eligible for 100% funding for establishment of Ashram Schools (i.e. school buildings, hostels, kitchen and staff quarters) for girls in areas and also for construction of Boys’ Ashram Schools in areas in Naxal affected areas identified by Ministry of Home Affairs from time to time” (as stated in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs Schemes for establishment of the Ashram Schools in the Tribal Sub Plan areas).

Although such model of bringing tribal children in a residential school could be very ‘colonial’ or ‘post colonial’ in nature where Ashram School could become an institution of assimilation of tribal children to the ‘mainstream culture’. However, in this context, the idea of education or formal education is conceptualised and operationalised within the Constitutional commitment and Governments initiative for the upliftment of children socially, economically and educationally.

The concept of Asham Shalas is grounded on the reality of tribal children where the idea of education engenders social and economic upliftment of tribal children and peoples through pragmatic residential education system. This is built on the historical background of the emergence of the urban, city and towns (aspects of modernity) where tribal children are likely to become peripheries and marginalised socially, publicly, culturally and economically. The villages, families and worldviews could get disconnected and displaced in the political economy of development. They are likely to be out of the purview of modern amenities such as road connectivity, electricity and other public services. Over and above, a situation of poverty, illness and ignorance in the villages will hinder accessibility to modern education system. In this backdrop, Ashram Shala was initiated to make possible accessibility to education for the tribal children. It is basically a residential school usually defined as complexes as it has a holistic approach towards education. It was envisioned to create conducive institution and environment of learning where children’s learning and growth is not compromised by external and internal challenging circumstances. It is opined that tribal children in the Ashram Schools should be taken special care by the Government. They are given all basic necessity of food, clothing, accommodation and a residential school environment conducive to learning and growth of children to full maturity. The Study Report of 2006 states,

“The idea of Ashram Shala is somewhat like the idea of ‘gurukul’, where teachers and students reside on the same premises. The analogy is not supposed to stop there. The idea is also to provide opportunities for informal interaction between teachers and students in the day to day living and management of the residential facilities, thus facilitate holistic education, including personality development of the Adivasi children.” (Rao 2006, p. 32)

The idea of Ashram School originated as a response to the plight of tribal children by the voluntary sector during the famines of 1919-20 and 1921-22 in Dahod and Jhalod talukas of Gujarat (Bipin 2013, p. 378). It was conceptualised based on the philosophy of basic education of Mahatama Gandhi.

Concrete Field Reality

The concrete conditions of the council and ashram schools as indicated in the emerging empirical reality indicate a dismal condition of tribal education. These observations, although of specific locations, are reflective of the present status of education system when we have just celebrated Seventieth Republic Day. The outcome directly impinges upon basic principles of our Constitution and the Constitutional commitment. The effort made by the Government over the years on bringing education to all children falls to its critical low if the condition of children in such situations is taken into consideration. It reflects the challenges faced by the respective Governments on implementation of Education Policy of 1986 and 1992. This has a direct implication on the status of growth and development of our country at the present time. As a point for argument for tribal education, the concrete condition of Council and Ashram Schools is highlighted in the following paragraphs;

a) Present Status of Ashram Schools

The first Ashram School in Maharashtra was established in 1953 (Roa, 2006, p. 32). As observed in the reports, this model was adopted by the state of Maharashtra, Department of Tribal Development in 1972-73 with the objective of making access to equality education among tribal children a possibility. The Ashram Schools are suppose to provide context based pragmatic education which includes reading, writing, arithmetic, training for work etc. for the social, economic and educational advancement for the tribal children.

In fact, in such a context, this arrangement becomes very crucial for the tribal areas as Central Government Schemes are instituted to cater to the specific situations. As observed in the reports, the Ashram Schools are able to provide conducive environment for education of tribal children and their contribution to bringing accessibility of education can hardly be exaggerated. Ashram Schools in Maharashtra in fact became very active in 1972-73. This central scheme could address to specific areas where the general system of education was unable to handle adequately in terms of both the funding, establishment and management. The recognition of Scheduled Areas in the state provided the administrative system for education. Presently, the Ashram Schools are managed by the Integrated Tribal Development Project (ITDP) offices. They are of two types; one that is run under the Aided model and the other directly run by the government, under the Tribal Development Department, Maharashtra. In particular, it is stated in the report that,

“As per the Government of Maharashtra GR of 14th August 1972, the aim of the Ashram School was envisaged as direct intervention to tackle the socio- economic and geographical inequalities of tribal population by providing educational opportunity to them. Later the Ashram Schools aimed to reduce the absenteeism, wastage and stagnation of education at primary level” (Study Report, 2015).

The report 2008, documented that there are 535 Ashram Schools (2005-06 academic year) in Maharashtra, having a capacity of 2,08,352 (1,04,176 boys and 1,04,176 girls) students. However, the report also states that there are 1,86,335 (89.43 percent) students presently enrolled, of which 1,04,059 (99.88 percent) are boys and 82,276 (78.97 percent) are girls (Bipin 2011, p.606). The latest Study Report 2015, a study conducted based on the High Court direction based on Public Interest Litigation filed by Mr. Ravindra Umakant Talpe on Ashram Schools indicates Ashram Schools cater to huge number of tribal children in Maharashtra. As cited in the report, at present there are 1108 schools, of which 552 are run by the Government, Tribal Development and 556 are under the Aided School management system across the four administrative zones each under an Additional Tribal Commissioner (ATC) (p. 4), a wide coverage of tribal children. It is mentioned that there are 5,61,644 students enrolled in the Ashram Schools in the academic year 2014-2015 (p.6).

However, all the three reports also revealed a dismal condition of many Ashram Schools representing the overall environment of Government Schools in tribal areas. The latest report among many observations indicates a deplorable condition of infrastructural facilities and living conditions of the students. In fact, the earlier two reports of 2006 and 2008 also indicated a similar disturbing reality of children in the Ashram Schools. In particular, report 2006 indicated abuse of children, sexually and psychologically. Both 2008 and 2015 reports, mentioned about the poor condition of the schools in terms of infrastructure, management and pedagogy. It is revealing that there is a huge backlog of vacancies that could have a repercussion on the working of education system. This trend is further observed in the diagnostic study of Tribal Sub-plan, 2014. Most of all, report 2015 reveals the most disturbing incidence of death of children in some Ashram Schools. It reports that

“There were total of 368 deaths as per the data in last five years (2009-2010 to 2013-2014). The highest (80) deaths were in the year 2013-14 and lowest deaths (62) were reported in the year 2009-10. The maximum deaths were due to the illness, followed by some or the other accident, snake bite and drowning.”

This incidence calls for a serious public debate and needs to be studied so that the malfunctioning can be detected and corrected at the level of the policy and practice.

These observations, although of specific locations, are reflective of the present status of education system when we have just celebrated seventieth Republic Day. The outcome directly impinges upon basic principles of our Constitution and the Constitutional commitment. The effort made by the Government over the years on bringing education to all children falls to its critical low if the condition of children in such situations is taken into consideration. It reflects the challenges faced by the respective Governments on implementation of Education Policy of 1986 and 1992. This has a direct implication on the status of growth and development of our country at the present time.

b) Present Status of District Council Schools

In reality, it is observed that a system of education is still vacant indicating that RTE cannot be implemented. Supposedly, Manipur state is one of the states which have taken proactive stance towards RTE and Right to Information (RTI). The SSA data Manipur section indicates that the state has made tremendous improvement on elementary education. However, in reality there is only an existence of a complex network of the bureaucratic structure, local powerful chiefs, local leaders, rich and underground organizations. In such a context, the recent education policy focus given in Manipur and recruitment of graduate teachers will have little effect. For instance, ‘local bodies’ in article no. 9 of the Right to Education Act (RTE) and the commission for child right although laid down in the rules to RTE still are yet to take off effectively. When it comes to infrastructure development of schools, School Management and Development Committee (SMDC), a committee of fourteen members, as policy has been constituted. However, at the ground reality, SMDC is functioning without a proper system support. What is most worrying to this system is the position of the Chairman and Secretary of the committee in whose names the school bank account is to be opened. In practice, Chairman is the local disbursement officer at the school level. As a rule the school headmistress/headmaster is the chairman. He/she becomes directly accountable to the financial transactions, accountability and transparency under RTI. The secretary is to be appointed by the committee representing the parents. These office positions have come under criticism from the tribal chiefs in many villages as they would like to be a de facto local disbursement officers at the village level. Over and above, the chairman and secretary are responsible to the local leaders and the undergrounds who also demand a share of the fund coming for the infrastructure development of village schools. In fact of-the-record, it has been observed that at least 50% of the fund goes to the bureaucratic offices of the education system, local leaders and underground groups. As observed, in the scheme for one room school building construction under SSA, one headmaster/headmistress of a village returned the money to the ZEO due to pressure of demand coming from outside organizations. Otherwise many schools are being constructed with low quality. As such, the school committee especially the chairman and secretary has become victim of the larger system.

Besides, there is a serious system problem in education at the level of the primary and elementary education system. As a policy, elementary education (class I-VIII) is the responsibility of state (ZEO). However, this becomes a system issue (in hill area) when it comes to the interface between the ZEO and the council. For instance, district council, recently in function has the primary responsibility for primary education under the Council Act. The people usually know it as ‘council schools’. The ZEO in the hill districts looks after the education system above class V. But in the recent times, a focus has come under RTE for free and compulsory elementary education covering age group between 6-14 (class 1-VIII). The SSA schemes is basically handled by the ZEO and runs across village schools. Therefore, ZEO has become more active in the RTE process covering the council schools. Such an emerging system creates a confrontation of systems within the hill areas; between council system and the zonal system. The system interface has not been spelt out in policy as well as in practice.

Education for children is one of the most important fundamental rights which the state is still not in a position to give to the children with effectiveness even today. This can be inferred from the number of children enrolled in government schools. Many schools are non-functioning due to non enrollment of children in spite of government incentives, development of infrastructure and appointment of graduate teachers. Parents opt mainly for private schools. Good schooling is considered to be enrollment in private schools. This implies a heavy cost for the children education at the family level. Some parents who are able to afford send their children to private schools in the capital city. The child has to rent an accommodation or stay in a private hostel. As a matter of fact, most of the income of the parents goes in school education. In such a condition, it is further observed that the parents through hard labour are able to support the child to go to private schools but slowly decline to financial problem. As year go by their ability to earn and support the children also decline. At the same time, the cost of education increases persistently. In such a situation the child definitely has a grim chance for higher studies.

A Critical Reflection

Given the disturbing condition of tribal children in district council schools and Ashram Schools as indicated in the above two illustrations, it can be argued that the present reality of tribal children reflects a situation of social exclusion and adverse inclusion, a direct infringement on the right of tribal children. It is an adverse inclusion as it disconnects the children from their social reality leading them to become deprived individuals within the given context. At the same time, they are also excluded from the Constitutional commitment of quality education to all children, an issue of inaccessibility. This situation possibly recalls the colonial nature of an education system that aims to assimilate indigenous peoples culturally and politically, an enterprise of civilization. Conceptually speaking, colonial system among the tribes amounted to total domination to an extent of a ‘death of tribe’ and the birth of the civilised as seen in many western regions. This is vividly pictured in the history of states of American, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia. In these contexts, one comes to know that colonialization was a direct control over culture, land, life and territory of indigenous people, also referred to as the first nations or the aborigines. Colonial policy cornered them to the confines of territorial Reserves.

However, Indian context is different. The social reality is complex and dynamic. In particular, the situation of coexistence of various societies in the subcontinent generated a colonial policy of a different kind. Here, social reality is characterised by a nuanced social interactions between societies and civilization, state and tribes. There is diversity and heterogeneity. The heterogeneous social reality of tribes, often referred in the peninsular region as Adivasis and Tribals in the northeast region, establishes a fact of dynamic social coexistence and plurality. At the same time, Tribal/Adivasis have shared experiences of struggle against state and societal dominations. Struggle is a fundamental part of their lived experiences shared across regions. It is a struggle to live. Existence itself is a struggle and life is made possible by the very fact of their embedded worldview, culture, land and identity. It is holistic in nature and becomes the only defence against other cultures that attempts to define and segregate as can be observed in the history of the British Government direct encounter with the Tribals and Adivasis. In the construct of the colonial, Tribals/Adivasis were considered as targets of British political project expansion in the subcontinent. This generated a specific politics where both direct and indirect strategies were used to administer them. The basic intension was to assimilate them into the state and mainstream them.

Further, the present condition of tribal children in Schools as reported in the studies, in some sense, indicates a minimalist approach. In the particular, one can conclude with some sense that tribal education is a product of charity initiatives as a voluntary response to the condition of tribal peoples in India and still forms the philosophical foundation of education of tribal children. This sector became active partner of welfare service delivery system in the post Independence. The sector has the commitment and could reach out to places where it is difficult for Government to reach. However, this social response is likely to be limited as its motivation is rooted in a belief of religious endowment, charity and philanthropy. It could be a detached work where there is a likelihood of tribes being taken as mere beneficiaries.

Moreover, the observation in the study reports highlight policy issues emanating from a certain perspective towards tribes raising questions of membership as citizens and their stake in the formulation of the policy. It indicates the possibility of a gap between policy and reality of the people. This gap will appear if the policy doesn’t recognise and give space for people to be constructive and interpretative persons and collectives in the realization of the policy. This can be also observed in the event of Tribes/Adivasis being driven to the peripheries through the binary colonial construct of sacred and profane, state and non-state, civilised-uncivilised. Any attempt towards assimilation of the tribes as people who needed to be civilised even in the Indian context is colonial in approach.

This mindset can have immense influence on the policy makers and the administrators. If such is the case, the aim of establishing conducive environment for the children will get defeated. Children are likely to be abused and de-motivated to learn and grow which will adversely affect growth and development as children. On reading the Study Reports, there is an apprehension that Government is still not prepared to handle the Ashram Schools effectively. The findings of the Outcome Report indicates issues of efficiency, effectiveness, transparency and accountability that could lead to situation of low enrolment, drop out and death of children in the school premises.

A possible solution to the problem will come from the policy and change of mindset of the policy makers, administrators and teachers. This has to begin with a policy that evolves from the lived experiences of the people. It should entail creation of space for the positive recognition of tribal children, villages and rural reality. It should ensure a system where every child, Tribal/Adivasi child in particular, regardless of the socioeconomic status, gender, caste and religion has equal access to quality education. Indicating absence of such a policy commitment, the High Level Committee Report 2015 observes that there is adverse inclusion, to highlight the situation of Scheduled Tribes especially in Adivasi areas.

As an intention, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and Tribal Development Departments were created to strengthen the role of Government in tribal areas. Towards this, the Ministry has several schemes for the upliftment of Scheduled Tribes across the states. Many of the schemes under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs were initiated by the voluntary organizations. The Ashram Schools is one of such initiative. However, it is important to note that scheme approach could be limited by its specificity and beneficiary orientation. It could be taken as a part time response of Government to the issue of welfare and development of Scheduled Tribes in a realm of charity than right, a minimalist approach. In fact, the poor condition of Ashrams Schools in some way, accounts for the minimalist role taken by Government on education of Tribals/Adivasis.

The scheme of council and Ashram Schools is different from the SSA school, residential schools or the Zilla Parishad schools which are directly under Ministry of Human Resource Development and State Ministries of Education. The Central Schemes such as Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan or the Midday Meal are designed on the objective of realizing right to education for all. These schemes are clearly conceptualised and operationalised within the purview of the main system of education. However, the Ashram School come under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. As observed, such arrangement can also lead to issue of management of the schools at the level of effective inter departmental convergence. This gap could compromise on institutional sustainability and comprehensive long term results of the Ashram Schools suggesting a proper policy of convergence of all Government Schemes under the purview of Right to Education for all children. Although, the Ashram Schools are managed under the ITDP office, it is not clear how far they are equipped to handle education as indicated in the Diagnostic Study of the Tribal Sub-plan, 2014. In all the three above mentioned reports, there is clear indication on the importance of building the expertise, manpower and improving the overall outcome of the Scheme of Ashram Schools. Towards this, the need for prioritization of schemes and streamlining functions and interdepartmental convergence for enhancement of the working of education system in tribal areas is emphasised.

A large number of tribal children, who are not able to effort private schools are enrolled in the Council and Ashram Schools. Therefore, we cannot underestimate the role of these schools towards bringing education to all tribal children regardless of their local context. Education is still one of the most important means towards social, economic and political upliftment for the marginalised sections, Tribals/Adivasis in particular. Towards this project, the Council and Ashram Schools have played a significant role. Therefore, the reports state that even though the scheme is plagued by issues, the focus should be made on orienting and re-imaging from justice, equality and equity principles rather than closing down the schools.

Equity and Inclusive Perspective

A policy perspective that builds on the lived experiences of people is very crucial to the realization of a pragmatic education system. While there is an observed attempt by the present Government to bring about a relevant and contextually arrived at a policy of education grounded on values, knowledge and skills, the policy makers cannot be blind on the realities of the rural and tribal areas. The Government has a Constitutional commitment to bring education for all children. The responsibility of evolving an inclusive education system built on the principles of access, equality and equity fundamentally lies on the Government. In this direction, I submit that Government Schools and Ashrams are important to uphold an education system that response to the lived experiences of the people especially those in the vulnerable locations. The government is accountable to the Constitution article 21(A) and Right to Education Act, 2009. Right to Life is fundamental to it. Education should generate a dignified social environment for every child to growth to full maturity. In particular, when it comes to the tribal children, the attempt to evolve an environment that satisfies dignified life has to be understood from the lived experience and worldviews. The tribal children as agents are critical aspects in the process of arriving at conducive environment. In this sense, creating a pragmatic education system is closely linked to recognition of the agency and worldviews of the tribal children. They are critical part of building an inclusive system. They are not mere target groups and beneficiaries for the charity and welfare but are active parts of the working of the system. The worldviews, culture, identities and their struggles are foundational to inclusive education. A policy recognition of cultural diversity and values as foundation of a new education policy will get realised only when this framed is grounded on principles of access, equality and equity. The policy recognition and protection of diversity of worldviews is a fundamental responsibility of Government, a non-negotiable in the Indian context. In the absence of such a perspective, institutional assimilation and social exclusion/adverse inclusion are bound to happen.

Therefore, the proposed new policy should provide a frame to secure accessibility of quality education for all children regardless of their socio economic, religion, gender, caste and tribe backgrounds. It should ensure quality school infrastructures, learning-teaching facilities, teachers and administrators across all Council and Ashram Shalas. The Government should make maximum effort to extend the benefits of Right to Education Act and the Constitution article 21 (A) across all sections of the society including the rural poor and tribal children in the villages. It should enable conducive educational environment where there is an institutional support of children against cultural, institutional hegemony and assimilation at the school premises. The policy should have an orientation on constructive pedagogy of dialogue and respect for every all where every citizen, without any discrimination, should be recognised as ethical and responsible person occupying a fundamental part in the process of a realization of quality education for all children.

References

• Bhatia and Bhatia (1997), The Philosophical and Sociological Foundations of Education, Delhi: Boaba House.
• Jojo, Bipin (2011, based on Study Report of 2008), Government Ashram Schools For Tribals: An Outcome Budget, IJSW, 72(4), p. 605-616.
• Jojo, Bipin (2013), “Decline of Ashram Schools in Central and Eastern India: Impact of Education on Study Children”, Social Change, Sage Publication, 43(3), 377-395.
• Jojo, Bipin (August 2015), A Report on Government and Aided Ashram Schools in Maharashtra, Tata Institute of Social Science Sponsored by Department of Tribal Development, Government of Maharashtra.
• Khora, Sthabir (2011), Education and Teacher Professionalism: Study of Teachers and Classroom Processes, Jaipur: Rawat Publications.
• Kundu, Manmatha (2003), Tribal Education: New Perspectives, New Delhi: Gyan Publishing House.
• Leivon, Kimnei Salviana (2012), Primary Education for Tribal Children in Manipur: A Special Reference to Hill Districts, M.Phil Thesis (Unpublished).
• Rao, Vidya (August 2006), Study of Child Abuse in Ashram Shalas and Vastigrihs in Maharashtra, Tata Institute of Social Sciences Sponsored by Department of Tribal Development, Government of Maharshtra.
• Report of the High Level Committee on Socio-Economic, Heath and Educational Status of Tribal Communities of India, Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India, 2014.
• Report of the Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes Commission (Dhebar Commission), 14^th October, 1961.
• Tribal Subplan in Maharashtra: A Diagnostic Study(November 2014), Tata Institute of Social Sciences Sponsored by UNCIF, Mumbai.
• Tripura, Biswaranjan (2014), Educational Experiences of the Indigenous Peoples, New Delhi: A Mittal Publication.
• Vinoba (Translated version 2010), Thoughts on Education, Varanasi: Sarva Seva Sangh Prakashan.