Deepali Kalia-
Published on: August 02, 2021 at 7:00 PM
On 2nd August, the Bombay High Court asked the Maharashtra Government to, consider setting up a channel dedicated to education in consultation with the Centre, for the students specifically from rural areas and including the specially-abled children so that their education is not affected during the pandemic.
A Division Bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice G S Kulkarni was hearing the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by NGO Anamprem which voiced the issues that students with disabilities were facing in pursuing their education during pandemic.
It was highlighted by the Bench that students in the rural areas because of poor mobile network connections and not being able to afford to purchase a mobile phone have been unable to attend online classes being carried out through apps.
Chief Justice Datta stated, “I do not get a mobile network connection when I travel to Nagpur or Aurangabad. How do you expect mobile network in rural areas then? The state government should not be relying on mobile network alone.”
The Court observed, “We have hundreds of channels for movies and entertainment, but not a single channel just for education. Every household, including in rural areas, has a television set. During this pandemic, students, especially in rural areas, are suffering.”
The Bench asked, “Education should not take a backseat. Online studying may work in urban areas, but not in rural areas. People in rural areas may not have the funds to purchase a smartphone. You (government) are conducting classes on Google Meet and Zoom meeting apps. What if there is no mobile network connection only?”
Therefore, the Bench stated that a channel dedicated to education must be set up for not only the specially-abled students but all the students who due to lack of facilities could not attend classes via virtual mode.
It was observed by the Court that earlier Doordarshan used to air a one-hour special program on agriculture. Hence, if similar initiatives are undertaken then the need for mobile phones would end.
Government should also look into possibly making use of radio to hold educational talk shows for the students, the Bench added.
The petition will be further heard by the Court on August 5th.
Also Read: Karnataka HC stays on Govt Ban on Online Classes until Physical classes resume