Survey: Children deprived of education in cities

GULBARGA: The State government has decided to conduct a survey of the children  deprived of education living the jurisdiction of nine Municipal Corporations from December 10, sources in the education department told Express on Saturday. The survey will be conducted in Bangalore Urban, Tumkur, Mysore, Mangalore, Davangere, Bellary, Hubli-Dharward, Gulbarga and Belgaum from December 10 to 17 through selected agencies. Though Tumkur does not have a  Municipal Corporation, the survey is being conducted in that town as the grant has been released for the purpose, sources said.The survey will identify the children in  the age group of 6 to 14 who are deprived of education. Later, they will be enrolled to the Chinnara Tangudhama (children stay centres) or special training centres meant for school dropouts. The government will provide basic infrastructure facilities like food, boarding, education, health services to such children and will bring them to the mainstream of the society.   The survey will be conducted in  areas like railway station, bus stand, market, temple/church/mosque, under construction buildings , hotels/lodges, marriage halls, film theatres, mining places, brick and puffed rice preparing units, slums, small industries,   garages, traffic junctions etc. Child beggars, child labourers, orphan children, children of sexual and others who are deprived of education come under the category of children deprived of education in urban areas.    The government has provided `15 lakh each to theses nine cities for survey work and instructed to provide one-day training to the agencies conducting the survey. The surveyors have to collect all the relevant information of the children along with their photographs.    A coordination committee has been set up in each city with Deputy Commissioner as the chairman. Commissioners of the concerned Municipal Corporations, Chief Executive Officers of Zilla Panchayats, Superintendents of Police, officers of the Labour Department, Women and Children Welfare Department, BEO, BRCs of the jurisdiction of the Corporation, DDPIs and Social Welfare and Health officers will be the members of the coordination committee of survey, the sources said.   Don Bosco Association, Margadarshi Association, Sahara Organisation and SEEDS Association have been chosen to take up survey of urban deprived children of Gulbarga City and training has been given to them about conducting the survey.