State education department’s survey that started in Feb estimates that 25,204 students left school in the state amid pandemic, of these 288 are child labourers, experts say number is low.
According to the survey there are only 11 students in Mumbai who dropped out of school due to child labour. File pic
Mumbai has recorded the highest number of children who dropped out of school amid the pandemic in the state. The education department of the state government concluded its survey to locate out-of-school students and found that 25,204 students are out-of-school, out of which 10,821 are from Mumbai.
The survey also presents data of migrated children from Maharashtra amid the pandemic. While 14,084 children have moved to other states, 8,801 are from Mumbai.
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The Maharashtra State Education Department launched the survey to locate out-of-school students in late February. Committees were formed at district levels to execute the much-needed task as the education sector has been severely affected. Many children have dropped out due to varied reasons.
According to the survey, of the total 25,204 children in Maharashtra who are out of school, 1,212 are special children, while 288 are child labourers. Mumbai’s data shows that 8,801 children are out-of-school out of which 150 are special children and 11 are child labourers. Migration has been a significant aspect during the pandemic with many losing jobs and other livelihood options. While many children have left the state and city, the number of children coming to the city is only 381 and for the state it is 7,784.
‘Data appears incorrect’
The data has been criticised by teachers and experts for the methods used to collect it and for the lack of actions taken in response. “The claim of there being only 288 child labourers in the state, contradicts with all other information available in the public domain, collected by social organisations working for the cause,” said Heramb Kulkarni, a senior educationist. According to Kulkarni, the number shown in the data is very less and unbelievable. “Amid the pandemic, when you are not able to reach students, when schools are closed, how was the drive implemented and data derived? This is questionable. We had raised issues after the survey was launched but the government did not heed us. The survey had a time period of 10 days, which is an impossible deadline to meet, especially amid the pandemic,” Kulkarni said.
A school principal from a suburban government-aided school said, “Many schools are complaining of children dropping out because of the pandemic and yet these figures show only a few children being out-of-school. More so, the drive has become like an annual activity. But nobody bothers about what happens to these located children after a certain period. Once identified, these children are enrolled in schools nearby, but whether they remain in the education system or not, is never verified. This makes the entire process futile, as without knowing this pattern, the root cause of children dropping out of schools cannot be resolved.”
1,212
No. of special children who dropped out of school in state
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