COMMUNITY RADIO IS THE ONLY WAY TO REACH THE UNREACHED STUDENTS

Relevant for Sociology Syllabus: Paper 1- Social Change in Modern Society; PAPER-2 – Social Changes in India)

(Relevant for GS Syllabus: Paper 1– Social empowerment)

• A recent study in the United States found that around 17% of children are unable to complete their homework due to limited internet access. 
• This “digital divide”and often resulting “homework gap” mirrors trends in California, where about 1 in 6 school-aged children lack access to the internet at home.
• If the digital divide is such a huge problem in a country like the United States, just imagine the situation of India. The Eighty-sixth Amendment inserted Article 21-A in the Constitution of India to provide free and compulsory education of all children in the age group of six to fourteen years as a Fundamental Right in such a manner as the State may, by law, determine.
• The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009 that came into effect on 1 April 2010, which represents the consequential legislation envisaged under Article 21-A, means that every child has a right to full-time elementary education of satisfactory and equitable quality in a formal school which satisfies certain essential norms and standards.
• The Government must provide free and compulsory elementary education to each and every child, in a neighbourhood school within 1 km, up to class 8 in India. No child is liable to pay fees or any other charges that may prevent him or her from pursuing and completing elementary education.
• Free education also includes the provisions of textbooks, uniforms, stationery items, and special educational material for children with disabilities in order to reduce the burden of school expenses. But how the children will get the education during this COVID-19 crisis? Apart from the private schools, in all the public schools operate in remote areas are far away from the online education system. Although many initiatives have been taken by the union and the state governments, but are they sufficient to reach those schools.
• In a country, where children were provided a mid-day meal to fill-up their stomach, how can they afford smartphones or tabs along with the internet connectivity? Again, the electricity facility becomes a serious concern in thousands of remote villages.
• Another important apprehension is that the Right to Education Act 2009 prohibits all kinds of physical punishment and mental harassment, discrimination based on gender, caste, class and religion, screening procedures for admission of children capitation fee, private tuition centres, and functioning of unrecognised schools. But, in the last more than four months of the COVID crisis, many students are mentally harassed for not having smartphones or electronic gadgets to continue online classes.
• In a tragic incident, a 16-year-old class 10 student allegedly committed suicide after she failed to attend online classes in the absence of a computer or a smartphone in Nischinda area of Howrah district of West Bengal in June this year.
• This is not a single case, there are many other cases where students are depressed since they are unable to attend online classes or continue education due to non-availability of smartphones with internet connectivity.
• These are the challenges in disseminating minimum education to the deprived students of rural India due to the COVID crisis. But how it can be possible to reach those unreached students. One option may be the use of public service broadcasting, like All India Radio since it has a footprint in almost cent percent of the landmass.
• Nevertheless, the problem is that it cannot serve the local needs because of the large coverage area. However, the earlier educational radio provisions like GYAN VAANI can address this challenge. The second option may be an interactive voice response (IVRS) system. But for this provision also basic telephonic connectivity is required. Considering all these options, the best possibility may be the use of community radio in remote areas.
• As we define, community radio is primarily a low power FM broadcasting service owned, controlled, managed and run by a particular community with a non-profit motive for providing and sharing information, education, and entertainment which may lead to eradicating digital divide, address identity crisis, remove socio-economic hindrance, promote local culture and resolve local issues resulting in the overall development of a community (Ankuran Dutta & Anamika Ray, 2014).
• India has nearly 300 community radio stations in the country and for this purpose, many more community radios are required. Recently, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister, Prakash Javadekar said that Community Radio is a community in itself and it is agents of change. Ministry will come out with a plan to increase the number of such stations soon.
  The National Institute of Open Schooling runs programmes through Radio Vahini FM 91.2 MHz,
• which is a community radio station, but it is only available in Noida. Similarly, Radio Brahmaputra of Dibrugarh broadcast a programme called Akanir Parhasali, which is an educational programme specially designed for the Anganwari kids. The objective of the programme is to associate and engage the Anganwari kids in their regular Anganwari centre activities through radio, as all Anganwari centers are closed due to the pandemic.
• Community radio has limitations of coverage area, but it can also be considered as a strength. Utilising the teachers of the coverage area, community radio can design and broadcast educational programmes targeting the deprived students of the community with a local flavour to make educational programmes more interesting. Many of the community radio stations of the country have been trying to provide quality learning opportunities during this pandemic using edutainment pedagogy.
• A radio has lots of advantages and also the credibility among the marginalised communities in our country. THUS, ONLY COMMUNITY RADIO STATIONS CAN REACH THOSE UNREACHED STUDENTS WITH QUALITY LEARNING MATERIALS DURING AND POST COVID SITUATION. There are a willingness and a collaborative approach required from both states as well as the union governments to establish more community radio stations through educational institutions and civil society organisations to bridge the digital divide. It is appreciated that the Government of Assan in collaboration with the UNICEF has prepared a roadmap to utilise community radios for the dissemination of educational materials.
• In a developing country like India, radio has been considered as the most potent communication tool and that facility should be utilised during this catastrophe. Based on the states’ requirements, the union government should simplify the application process so that within a couple of months many more community radio stations can be established in every nook and corner of the country.