M-114, Mount Kailash 

Kanpur

5th October, 20×× 

The Editor 

The Times of India

New’Delhi 

Sub: The problem of illiteracy among children 

Dear Sir, 

I recently went to my native village to visit my grandparents. There I saw that some of the children in the age group 5-14 (the age at which they should have been in school) remained at home, or were working in the fields or simply loitering in the streets. 

The parents of such children fail to realize this. They see their children as an extra pair of hands and prefer to send them to work in the fields. The parents of the children loitering in the streets clearly do not have access to school, or do not think that for their children schools are better than streets. Whatever the reasons are, the fact remains that there is still a vast village population which needs to be brought in the fold of basic education. Primary education should be universal and publicly financed, and all children should be able to attend school regardless of their parents’ ability or willingness to pay. The reason is simple: when any child fails to acquire the basic skills needed to function as a productive, responsible member of society, the cost of educating children is far outweighed by the cost of not educating them.

I hope this letter will find space in your esteemed daily.

Yours sincerely 

Navtej