Justice KS Radhakrishnan
The Economic Times reports, “India’s Supreme Court has ordered that schools nationwide must be provided with toilets and drinking water within six months, calling it part of children’s right to an education. …Lack of toilets and drinking water ‘clearly violate the right to free and compulsory education of children,’ the court said in the judgement handed down earlier in the week.”
“An activist group, Right to Education Forum, reported in April that one in 10 Indian schools lack proper drinking water facilities while 40 percent do not have toilets.”
BBC adds, “A bench headed by Justice KS Radhakrishnan said that a lack of such basic facilities was a violation of the right to free and compulsory education guaranteed in the Indian constitution. The order comes after a private petition was filed in the court. …Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said sufficient funds would be made available to ensure that children had access to a full education.”
