95% of TN migrant children in school

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu may not have been able to achieve 100% enrolment of children in the state, but it has had more success in getting children of migrants in the state go to school.
The latest findings of a survey by the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan wing of the state school education department show that there are 5,294 children of migrant labourers in the state (up to August 31), and that 95% of them have been enrolled in age appropriate classes in school.
As many as 2,157 are children of migrants from other states, including Andhra Pradesh (508 children), West Bengal (422) and Bihar (335). Of this, 2,055 are in school, the survey said. SSA officials attributed this to the efforts taken by the state to bring in teachers fluent in the mother-tongue of the children and get textbooks in different languages.
Kancheepuram has the largest population of children of migrant labourers. There are 1,118 children, of which 983 have been placed in schools. Coimbatore has the second highest number at 877, of which 876 are in school, followed by Tiruvallur, which has 762 children with 696 in school. The total number of migrant children in Chennai is 274, of which 241 have been enrolled.
Activists said TN has made headway with migrant children by partnering with non-governmental organisations.
However, the numbers do not convince many. Raman Mahadevan of Institute of Development Alternatives, who conducted a study on migrant children in TN a couple of years ago, found the figures “unbelievable”. He said government agencies must be much more proactive in reaching out to migrant children. “This is linked to the whole question of being sensitive to the issue of migration. TN does not have a concrete policy, such as registering migrants as soon as they come here, and giving them ID cards. If this is done a lot — from education to healthcare — will fall into place,” Mahadevan said.
Bernard D’Sami, who has been working with migrant labourers, said the number may be small because it may have been difficult to track the floating population. He said the RTE Act insists on free and compulsory education, but the state should go a step further and ensure quality education. This will help bring migrant children to school.
Unicef suggests setting up joint task forces in districts to plan and collaborate in facilitating migration. It suggests making schools and teachers responsible for tracking and mainstreaming migrant children. Another idea is to adopt and upscale innovative practices by NGOs and local administration.