The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, commonly referred to as the Right to Education Act or RTE Act, is an Act of the Parliament of India that provides for free and compulsory education to children in the age group of 6 to 14 years. It gives effect to Article 21A of the Constitution of India, which makes elementary education a fundamental right. The Act came into force on 1 April 2010.
| Short title | Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 |
|---|---|
| Enacted by | Parliament of India |
| Year of enactment | 2009 |
| Date of commencement | 1 April 2010 |
| Age group covered | 6 to 14 years |
| Constitutional basis | Article 21A |
| Concerned ministry | Ministry of Education, Government of India |
| Type of right | Fundamental Right |
The idea of free and compulsory education in India predates the Constitution. The original Article 45 of the Directive Principles of State Policy directed the State to endeavour to provide free and compulsory education to all children up to the age of 14. Over the decades, this directive principle was the basis of various policies and schemes, but elementary education remained a non-justiciable goal rather than an enforceable right.
The Constitution (Eighty-sixth Amendment) Act, 2002 inserted Article 21A into the Constitution, making free and compulsory education for children aged 6 to 14 a fundamental right, to be provided "in such manner as the State may, by law, determine." The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 is the enabling legislation that gives concrete shape to this constitutional mandate.
The Act is implemented primarily by State Governments and Union Territory administrations, with the Central Government providing financial and technical support. Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, the flagship programme for universalisation of elementary education, became the principal vehicle for implementing the RTE Act. It was later subsumed into the integrated scheme Samagra Shiksha, which covers school education from pre-primary to higher secondary level.
The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) and corresponding State Commissions have been entrusted with monitoring the implementation of the Act and inquiring into complaints relating to the rights of children under it.
The Act has been amended on more than one occasion. A notable amendment relates to the provisions on detention and examination at the elementary stage, which permitted States to hold a regular examination at certain classes and to detain a child who fails, subject to additional instruction and a re-examination. Other amendments have related to teacher qualification timelines.
The Right to Education Act is regarded as a landmark piece of social legislation in India because it transformed elementary education from a directive principle into a justiciable fundamental right. It places statutory obligations on the State and on schools to ensure inclusion, access, and minimum quality standards. The Act has also been significant for its provisions encouraging social inclusion in private schools and for setting infrastructural and pedagogical norms for elementary schools across the country.
At the same time, the Act has been the subject of considerable debate concerning issues such as learning outcomes, teacher availability and training, infrastructure compliance, financial implications for unaided schools, and the recognition requirements for small and minority-run institutions. The Supreme Court of India has examined several of these aspects, including the applicability of the Act to different categories of schools.