Mobile schools for nomadic tribes in Jhalawar
While the parents rear cattle in the forest, the children study in an unusual school setup under the open sky.
Chal Pathshala (mobile school) is a concept of the Jhalawar district administration. It has been specially designed for children of nomadic tribes in order to fulfil the objective of Right to Education – education a fundamental right of every child between the ages 6 and 14.
“There is a lot of migration of nomadic tribes, such as Devasis, in the district. Due to their constant movement, the children are unable to continue their education. The community, which usually stays in the district for around two-three months, makes the forest their base, in order to graze their cattle,” Jhalawar district collector Jitendra Kumar Soni said.
“To ensure a bright future for their children, the district administration had initiated the ‘Chal Pathshala’ in 2015, but the participation was not enthusiastic. The next year the situation remained the same. However, the two schools setup this year has over 55 students between the ages of 6 and 14,” said Soni.
The concept of mobile school came up as the children could not make it to the schools as they base themselves in the forest. So the administration thought of making arrangements and came out with the concept, he added.
“It’s not an easy task. Our district education officers and others have to constantly convince parents to send their child to school,” said the district collector.
At present, the attendance at the two schools — Bagher forest and Barapati forest — is marked daily. Two teachers take care of the school and they have been provided with a folding black board, chalk, sheet for students to sit on etc.
“The students are provided books and stationery free of cost. On August 5, they will be given school dress and shoes. In addition, in the coming 10 days arrangements will be made to provide mid-day meal from a nearby government school,” said Soni. District education officer Hari Shankar Sharma said the children at these schools are assessed by the teacher and taught accordingly.