Kerala - The Highest Literacy Rate in India

Kerala has the highest literacy rate among the states of India. But kerala school struggles brake caste barriers and a school in the northern district of Kozhikode is a case point . The Government Welfare L P School in Perambra village has become a dalit only school. Because other communities in village have stopped sending their children there. Even after starting the L K G section and providing best amenities, including smart class room and pedagogy park the school still remains untouchable for the civil society. Thirty scheduled caste sambavas live in the Cherumala colony is situated near the L P school .No non – dalit students are studied during the last 15 years . A teacher of the Government Welfare School said that the upper class parents told they don’t they don’t want their kids to sit with sambavas [parayas]. Headmaster Raghudas tettiyil said that” the school have very good infrastructure but people don’t like to sent the kids to school and also he says that there are only 15 students in the school and all of them belong to sc category. NO upper class students are studied here in the last 15 years, even though we tried out to increase the strength”.

The discrimination seen in the school is merely an extension of the ostracisation practiced in the other aspects of the village social life, according to one school teacher the paraya colony itself is being ostracized. None of the other caste neighbours invite them for weddings and other functions .These people are not included any activities of the locality, but recent days they developing their own social status .Children from the colony [higher secondary students] is quoted saying classmates and other insulted by calling their caste name paraya. Kerala had a very unpleasant past where we practiced frantic caste and religion based discrimination and untouchability. But even now these problems are continuing. 99 percent of sambavas said they were insulted by calling their caste name .Not only children if you are born in a lower cast family you will always be out of the society. Upper caste people will insult you calling your caste name, they will discriminate you as your skin colour is dark and your language has a different accent, says one resident of the colony.

Students from the chermala sambava colony are untidy, they has lot of diseases since they live in unhygienic environment. This is also a reason why parents are hesitant. The Headmaster and others worked hard over the last ten years to ensure the children stay the course, because most of the students are drop out their studies.

The concept of social justice still remains. A myth to the downtrodden castes and groups. In the absence of equality national integration will never be strong. Article 46 of the constitution of India provides special care to the educational and economic interest of weaker sections. But these constitutional provisions also have not been above to bridge the gap between the upper castes and scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, and the general population.