Reimagining Universal Rights: Education and Healthcare for All

Experts emphasize the need for treating basic education and healthcare as universal rights, rather than commodities. In a seminar, figures from the academia and healthcare sectors discussed the challenges in India, focusing on policy stagnation, commercialization, and climate change's impact on health and education.

On a pressing note, experts from various fields have stressed that basic education and healthcare should be treated as universal rights, not commodities. This call to action aims to fortify public systems to combat inequality and address the escalating impacts of climate change.

The seminar titled 'Education and Health for All: Promises and Challenges,' conducted by the Pratichi Trust in collaboration with Climate24, scrutinized the obstacles facing India's health and education sectors in light of policy stagnation and commercial interests. Academia and healthcare professionals underscored these issues amid prevailing social disparities.

Veteran academic Pabitra Sarkar critiqued conventional definitions of literacy, highlighting that earlier illiterate generations possessed significant qualitative education in social values compared to today's decline. Educationist Bhaskar Gupta proposed revisiting the Kothari Commission's neighborhood school model, while physician Fuad Halim warned of climate change exacerbating health risks.

(With inputs from agencies.)