The Hindu: Chennai: Friday, July 27, 2018.
It is the
first step towards bringing all educational institutions under RTI
As a first
step towards implementing the Tamil Nadu Information Commission’s order to
bring educational institutions, including private schools, under the purview of
the Right to Information (RTI) Act, the Directorate of School Education has
instructed District Education Officers (DEOs) to ensure that all schools
disclose on their websites criminal cases pending against members of their
management, principal, teaching/non-teaching staff, drivers and attenders of
vehicles.
In a recent
order, State Information Commissioner S. Muthuraj, while passing orders on a
petition, directed that all private schools availing themselves of benefits
from the government by way of funds, grants or subsidies, either directly or
indirectly, were public authorities and were bound to disclose all information
that were of public importance under the RTI Act. With incidents of child
abuse, some reported in educational institutions, on the rise, parents and
public at large had a legitimate right to know about the credentials of persons
who managed the institutions.
“The
Commission is bound to issue a direction to the schools to furnish the
steps/measures taken by the management for the safety of the children…the
parents have a right to know about the management, correspondents and all other
teaching and non-teaching staff of the school, drivers of vehicles, and
attenders of the school in which their children are being admitted,” Mr.
Muthuraj said.
Complying
with the order, the Directorate of School Education has written to all DEOs to
coordinate with District Crime Records Bureau to get details of criminal cases
pending against management and staff of the schools. Since the matter involved
the safety of children, Chief Education Officers were told to monitor the
implementation of the order, official sources said. In a related communication,
the Additional Director-General of Police, State Crime Records Bureau (SCRB),
has written to all Commissioners/Superintendents of Police to provide relevant
data to School Education Department officials in compliance with the Tamil Nadu
Information Commission’s order.
Chief
Education Officers were told to monitor the implementation of the order,
official sources said.
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