India’s Journey towards Achieving the Fundamental Right to Education: Analyses of Past, Present and Future

Abstract

This study intends to give a holistic view of the fundamental right to education, its origin, existence and future. The study can be broadly divided into three parts. In the first part, it gives an insight, how we started!, i.e., on how did the fundamental right to education came into place, by describing the chain of events which led to the 86^th Constitution Amendment Act, its history from the Constituent Assembly debates, the pressure from the international forums, the various important educational policies and commissions to the various important judicial decisions related to the subject matter. The second part tells about where we are i.e., how the RTE Act, 2009, came into existence and laud the various provisions which have proven to be fruitful for the right to education from there onwards and what have proved to be the lacunas in the statute. It goes on to make various recommendations. The third part seeks to give an idea about, where we may be i.e., the future of the educational policy in the country by analyzing the Draft of the National Policy on Education, the areas which the draft seems to have rectified and the areas left. Some controversial points included as well as some required points left and how this draft shall impact the education in the country.