Distribution of never enrolled and dropped out girls and boys (aged 5-24 Yrs.) by reason for non-enrolment and dropping out of school (%) for rural West Bengal and India : 1995-1996 (Table E 10)

In the above context, some West Bengal NGOs concerned with education  had a number of points to make at the Interactive NGO Meet held in Kolkata on 3^rd June 2004, under the joint auspices of the National Commission for Women and West Bengal Commission for Women (hereafter Kolkata NGO Meet). They observed that the practice of relegating large numbers of girls to 'alternate schools' and thus to non-formal and non-standard systems of education was an undesirable trend. They also referred to certain 'hidden costs' of education which make for lower enrolment and higher drop-out rates even though West Bengal Govt. offers free school education for girls and they drew attention to the need  for 'safe shelter', specially for older girls in rural areas who have to attend schools located at a distance from their homes. These views find some corroboration in a  recent study carried out in a number of West Bengal districts. The study identified certain  common deterrents to school participation for girls : not having a dress that can be  worn to school; want of adequate learning materials and lack of safe means of travel. The study also found that half the ever-enrolled girls needed tuition after school for continuing with their studies. [i] Again, it has been noted that" The provision of mid-day meals is an important step towards ensuring better nutrition among the young as well as providing incentives for children to attend school regularly… However, the problem of finding finances to support a mid-day meal programme for all the children in public schools a elementary level still remains a difficult one." [ii] Currently more than 2000 schools provide mid-day meals and this number is expected to double by the end of 2004. Another relavant factor influencing enrolment and retention of girls, specially as they grow older, is the involvement of women teachers in educational institutions. In West Bengal, women teachers currently constitute about one-fourth of total teachers teaching at various levels. This is comparatively low in the all-India context and less than half the high proportion prevailing in Kerala, as shown in Appendix Table AE 2. There is also the problem of poor infrastructure that particularly affect girl children, lack of drinking water in the premises and absence of separate toilets for girls being two telling instances. Appendix Table AE 3 shows that till 2002 less than one-fifth of the schools had provided separate toilets for girls in most districts. Appendix table AE 4 brings out the gender imbalance in the student population in the primary as well as higher classes in each West Bengal district during the mid-1990s.