NEW DELHI - “Without education, we are no more than animals,” said Zahur Shah, 85, as he sat with his son Nizamuddin, 60, and grand daughters at the release of a report titled “People’s Report Card on Education” here Saturday.

“Me and my family have been facing problems in our day to day life because of lack of education,” said the Delhi-based octogenarian whose family members have never been to a school.

“People’s Report Card on Education” is a report based on a nationwide poll conducted by NGO Bachpan Bachao Andolan (BBA) to assess the implementation of Right of children to Free and Compulsory Education Act in the country.

The poll revealed that the much talked about phrases like right to education (RTE) and millennium development goals (MDG) have little significance for most Indians.

Only one out of six people had heard of the law on education but did not know anything else about it. The respondents included migrants living in the slums of the national capital.

The facts about the absence of information about RTE among people were revealed after 125 public hearings conducted across the country in nine states by the BBA.

The total number of people who participated in the public hearing was 30,240, out of which 15,522 were children and 14,718 were adults, including parents, teachers and panchayat members).

The hearings were conducted from Sep 4-8. The jury members included parliamentarians, members of judiciary, police officers, sub-divisional magistrates, members of child welfare committees, human rights activists and panchayat leaders.

In terms of awareness about the MDG, only 3 percent of people were aware of it, the survey indicated.

President of Global Campaign for Education, world’s largest conglomeration of civil society on education, Kailash Satyarthi, said: “Education is the most important force behind the staggering economic growth of India, but the free education of good quality is still beyond the reach of most Indians.”

“This report clearly reveals the disconnect between the India of urban elite and the Bharat of poor and rural people,” said Satyarthi.

Less than 3 percent of the people are aware about National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCRs) or the state commissions, the main agencies for enforcement of right to education law.

BBA chairperson R.S. Chaurasia said: “At a time when most of the places are turning paperless as they are shifting to computers, there are people who have not seen paper in their lives as they are uneducated.”

“We are launching this largest ever campaign in India on RTE in the form of 1,000 public hearings across the country over the next six months. We will file complaints before relevant authorities and courts based on the data and complaints received,” Chaurasia said.