Mrs. Farida Lambay shares her perspectives on education, in an interview with Melanie Mendez for IndianNGOs.com

Mrs. Farida Lambay, a Senior Lecturer & Vice Principal at Nirmala Niketan - ' College of Social Work', also the Founder Trustee & Executive Secretary of PRATHAM. A modest woman with forethought qualities.

PRATHAM an NGO working for 'Universalisation of Primary Education'. It first introduced its programme in Mumbai City & today it has expanded its operations all over India. PRATHAM operates in Pune, Delhi, Gujarat, Patna, Nagpur, Lucknow.

The 3 aspects of PRATHAM are mainly - " Every child in school, Every child learning & Every child attending". Mrs. Lambay stated that there are over 40,000 children & more in Mumbai who are outside school, so in order to target them PRATHAM organizes an outreach programme where in the children are contacted & then introduced into a 'hobby programme' which gradually initiates the child towards the main stream. A programme one of its kind introduced for the urban poor children in India who constitute a large proportion of the population.

When questioned about the impact media publicity & advocacy plan has towards Universalisation of elementary education Mrs. Lambay commented that PRATHAM has not yet presented a message of that kind. Media is important to reach the masses & it does play a vital & crucial role in enhancing societal's mission towards the spread of education. Media should look into the aspects of 'liberalization, globalization, privatization' which has been a hampering aspect in development & the Government has managed to escape from certain responsibilities towards its citizens & in issues concerning children.

PRATHAM is currently working on making education a 'societal mission' where in the different stake holders like the corporate sector, the Government or the voluntary sector like citizens also plays a vital role. In regard to this she reiterated that this mission should not be only the monopoly & concern of PRATHAM or the Municipal Corporation, but should also be the city's priority & in turn should be everybody's problem.

Mrs. Lambay's concern is for all the citizens to play a participatory role in spreading the Human Right aspect for the child deprived of basic education, in Mumbai. Her ultimate perspective of the media is that they should enhance this process by giving out positive information, instead to publicizing the negative aspects, which then acts as a detrimental force hindering any progress in this sector. She said our system is trying hard & that there are success stories which should be covered, so as to enlighten the citizens about this process & struggle.

She also comments on the current scenario that 'education' holds on society, is that of a divider, in terms that the higher class of society send their children to private schools & the remainder attend BMC schools. For education to be on an equal footage the entire educational scenario must change & the Government should consider this.

Mrs. Lambay commented that the State of Maharashtra has a comparatively good literate average than other parts in the country. The Government of Maharashtra (Local & State Government) have played an active role in implementation of schemes throughout the state, also collaborating with the voluntary sector at various levels which has led to the spread to education among the children.

She complemented the efforts of the Government of Maharastra, which has taken very progressive steps for the implementation of education, by increasing the number of teachers in BMC & rural schools, establishing a school in every backward village & district in the state, also replicating certain schemes from other states.

PRATHAM is the only model in the country, which is working in different urban cities for education. Most Government efforts towards education are for the rural areas, which has never resulted in an urban model, given that India was considered a 'Rural India'. But today with the advancement in growth & technology cities are fast developing, there has also been an increase in population in our cities.

PRATHAM is working in these cities on a mass scale, the Government observing these achievements have ventured on replicating this urban model in other states too. So for now, PRATHAM is looking at a future where it has to spread its wings & embark into newer challenges & horizons.

Mrs. Lambay's perspective for the role of social workers working in the voluntary sector for education is that - the role of the Government should not be substituted by creating parallel schemes. Efforts instead should be supplemented which create an onus on the authorities to work towards the 'Human Right, Fundamental Right & Fundamental Duty' aspect of the child.

People in communities should be mobilized & prepared to not only take this as a 'right' but also to send their children to school, as in most cases parents violate the rights of the child but preventing them from schooling. Therefore social workers must play the part of a change agent, advocating the 'rights of the child', working at micro & macro levels - with parents & Government authorities.

Mrs. Farida Lambay is hopeful of the deadline for the 83rd Amendment Bill to be introduced by 2005 which would state ' Universalisation of Elementary Education for All', as it will enable PRATHAM, PRATHAM like initiatives & other NGOs working for education to achieve its objectives.