Like several other initiatives, the officially declared earnest idea of the Right to Education has largely remained an ambitious project on paper. The absence of rigorous implementation of such schemes globally has deprived many knowledge seekers of their fundamental right to proper education. The governance’s inability or the lack of intent of some of those responsible for bringing the reforms into force has been crushing the aspirations of many modest background pupils to acquire world-class, affordable learning. One of the major reasons for this apathy is the massive earnings the vested interests derive from the commercialization of education.

The intrusion of Goddess Laxmi into the arena of Goddess Saraswati has made education the privilege of the affluent. Just like healthcare, education is a non-negotiable domain. You get the funds you demand, bolstering the intentions of the evil minds to keep the holistic academic infrastructure skewed, i.e. well-developed on one end of the spectrum and under-equipped on the other. Due to this asymmetry, pupils aim for the few elite but exorbitant institutes. They join expensive coaching classes to improve their chances of selection, and the students from underprivileged backgrounds remain helpless spectators.

The academic sector has become a cash cow. To milk it perpetually, the disparity in quality delivery has become a norm. To halt this inequality, more scholarships to the needy, optimal reservation policy keeping student welfare above vote banks, state-of-art study facilities, updated curriculum, and availability of highly-qualified and well-paid teachers, midday meals, especially in rural or municipal schools need to be the must-haves of government’s academic budget and implementation plans.