Madras HC: Providing quality education duty of Tamil Nadu

CHENNAI: Asserting that providing quality education is a constitutional mandate and the bounden duty of the state, the Madras HC has directed the Tamil Nadu government to revisit the scheme for appointment of government teachers in three months.
Justice S M Subramaniam also pointed out that Tamil Nadu stands 27th on the list of states providing quality education. The court has also recommended that candidates who have acquired educational qualifications through regular campus education must be preferred to the candidates who had studied through distance mode or in open universities. The court passed the order on a plea moved by J Nithya, a secondary grade teacher, whose representation for promotion as BT Assistant based on her B Ed degree obtained through distance mode was rejected.
"In the context of the provisions of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, quality education to be provided, is the right of the children," said Justice Subramaniam, disposing of the plea.
Quality education is not only prescribed under the provision of the Act, but it is a constitutional mandate. Providing infrastructure alone would be insufficient, but quality education to the children would alone build our great nation. Thus, ensuring quality education across the state is the bounden duty of the state government, the court added. "Even while implementing reservation merit cannot be diluted. Even among those from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, meritorious candidates are to be appointed, so as to ensure quality education to the children and students studying in schools and colleges," the court said.