Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal, held a live interactive session on Sunday – Talk to AK – in which he highlighted the tasks achieved by his government and also the issues that are affecting the country – the major issue being the no-detention policy. According to this policy, students are promoted every academic year till class VIII even if they fall short of obtaining the required passing marks.

The What and The How
The no-detention policy was introduced as a clause in the Right to Education (RTE) bill. As per the clause, the schools are instructed not to fail the students under any circumstances until they reach class VIII. This was done to ensure that students get compulsory education till the age of 14. The major downside to this rule is that the teachers are forced to pass students who do not even appear for the exams. Kejriwal stated that students are unable to read, write and understand properly when they reach the ninth standard. Hence, they are falling into depression and, in extreme cases, even committing suicide due to bad grades.

He also said that if this continues, the unemployment rates in the country will increase exponentially and will wreck the country in the long run. According to the CM, the central government should terminate the no-detention clause and approve the new bill prepared by the Delhi government in this regard.

Topics Reviewed
The interactive session went on for almost two hours and Kejriwal spoke at length about the importance given to education, water, power and health by his government.

Arvind Kejriwal discussed multiple issues during the session. The concerned authorities are yet to make a statement about the highlighted issues. Will the concerned authorities take the necessary action? Will the central government pass the bill submitted by Kejriwal? Only time will tell.