The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) is the flagship programme launched by the Government of India to achieve the Universalisation of Elementary Education (UEE) in a time-bound manner as mandated by the Constitution of India. The 86th amendment to the Constitution of India made the Right to Education a Fundamental Right. The Right to Education provides for free and compulsory education to children aged between 6-14 years.
The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) anchors the SSA programme. The SSA programme has been operational from 2000-2001. However, with the introduction of the Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009, changes were made in the SSA scheme.
The SSA scheme is implemented in partnership with the State Governments to cover the entire country and address the requirements of 192 million children in 1.1 million habitations. In 2018, the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan were subsumed and merged to form the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan scheme.
The features of the SSA scheme are as follows:
The SSA scheme seeks to positively impact curriculum, educational planning, teacher education, and management. The broad objectives of the SSA scheme are as follows:
The SSA scheme initiated the ‘Padhe Bharat Badhe Bharat’ programme in 2014. The Padhe Bharat Badhe Bharat programme seeks to improve the reading and writing skills of Class I and Class II children and their mathematics skills. It aims to help the children understand the joys of reading and writing from a real-life perspective.
The Padhe Bharat Badhe Bharat programme emphasises the importance of children’s literature in helping them become excellent writers and readers. This programme ensures that the schools In India become better at providing quality education. This programme is planned in a twin-track approach, which is as follows:
The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) is an initiative by the Government of India to achieve Universalisation of Elementary Education. It provides free and compulsory education for children aged 6-14 years, aiming to promote social justice. The SSA scheme, operational since 2000-2001, aims to impact curriculum, educational planning, teacher education, and management. 'Padhe Bharat Badhe Bharat' is a program under SSA to enhance reading, writing, and mathematics skills in Class I and II children.