Gujral plans to make study of human rights mandatory in schools, colleges
George Iype in New Delhi
In a major decision times for the golden jubilee year of
India's Independence, the United Front government has decided
to introduce compulsory human rights education in schools
and colleges across the country.
Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral has asked Cabinet
Secretary T S R Subramanian to hold a high-level meeting of 19
secretaries to the Government of India on Monday to discuss a
Source Book on human rights for students, teachers and academics.
The meeting will undertake a review of existing text
books with a view to eliminating those passages that are inimical
to human rights or that distorted the concept of civil liberties. It will finalise a broad
syllabus on human rights values for schools and colleges and shortlist a number of universities where separate courses on human rights could be introduced.
It is also likely to recommend to the government
that all educational institutions observe December
10 as Human Rights Day.
The newly-developed syllabus, besides carrying information
about human rights, will include topics on crucial national issues
like environment, health and population.
A senior official at the ministry of human resource
development said the UF government has already approved the Source
Book as a model guide for students, teachers and other academics
to inculcate humane values in the nation's educational institutions.
The Source Book -- prepared by the National Council
for Education Research and Training -- will be translated into all Indian languages and made available to
all educational institutions in the country.
Prime Minister Gujral is said to be keen to introduce
text books on human rights from this academic year onwards as
he feels it would befit the celebrations that are planned
for the 50th anniversary of Indian Independence.
The efforts to mobilise support to introduce human
rights in schools and colleges began in 1994 when the National
Human Rights Commission started discussions with NCERT, the
department of education, the University Grants Commission and
the National Council for Teacher Education about the manner
in which human rights values could be introduced into the education
system.
In one of its reports submitted to the Prime Minister
early this year, the NHRC had asked the government to introduce
human rights lessons in schools, colleges, universities as well
as in social programmes like the National Literacy Mission.
It said the government should 'create an awareness
of the safeguards for the protection of human rights in a country
where some 48 per cent of the population remained trapped in
illiteracy and vast numbers of our compatriots lived below the
poverty level.'
'There is a clear linkage between the creation of
society that is just, in economic, social and cultural terms,
and one in which a culture of human rights could take root, be
sustained and flourish,' the NHRC observed.
As per the NHRC orders, while NCERT prepared a
detailed syllabus on human rights education in schools, the UGC
has already prepared a proposal to include human rights in the
bachelors and masters degree in law courses. It has also asked
all universities to include human rights in the curriculum at
the graduate and post-graduate levels and promote research, seminars
and publications on the subject.
The UGC has also identified 10 universities where facilities
for instructions in human rights will be established -- Aligarh Muslim university, Andhra university, Banaras Hindu university, Cochin university, Delhi university, Jammu university, Karnataka university, Kurukshetra university, Punjab university and Rajasthan university.
Introduction of human rights in schools and colleges
in part of a series of other educational programmes that the UF
government has committed in its Common Minimum Programme.
Last month, the government made elementary education
to children up to 14 a fundamental right.
This year, the government has also committed 6 per
cent of GDP for education as against 3.7 per cent earlier.
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