The Indian activist movement dubbing itself the "Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)" shot to national prominence in May by leading weeks-long protests over a scandal involving highly competitive entrance exams. The student-led campaign put the government under intense political pressure and ended with the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan last month. Now, the CJP is taking aim at India's government schools, organizing volunteers visiting classrooms, documenting conditions and demanding accountability for problems.
Launched on August 15, India's Independence Day, the campaign asks parents, students and volunteers to inspect schools and record basic facilities including toilets, drinking water, electricity, classroom furniture and school buildings. The CJP says the findings will be used to pressure authorities to make improvements. Its initial target is to audit 100 rural government schools over two months.
It has also proposed giving recognition to village leaders who improve their schools. Unlike the first campaign, which was based on street protests, the school audits require a more sustained form of local activism. Volunteers are expected to work consistently at the local level, document conditions and follow up with officials, parents and communities.
The organization is dealing with different layers of the Indian administration. Responsibility for government schools is divided between state governments, local administrations and elected village bodies. The CJP is therefore set to tackle different rules and political interests across the country.
India has over a million government schools, according to Education Ministry data. They make up nearly 70% of all schools in the country but serve less than half of its 247 million schoolchildren. That scale has given CJP a vast field for its campaign.
But it has also brought a new set of challenges. The authorities are raising questions regarding rules and locations for the CJP scrutiny, as well as safeguards when children are present. The response is already varying from state to state.
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