The petitioner claimed, based on news reports, that only 9 per cent of students who are currently enrolled in any course have access to essential digital infrastructure. Hence, the attempt to make online education an opportunity out of the COVID-19 crisis poses a serious risk of leaving many students, especially the socio-economically disadvantaged, further behind.
It was also claimed that disparities in access are visible not only socio-economic but also regional levels; digital infrastructure and connectivity varies from state to state as well as between urban and rural areas.
Gender disparities in access to online education was also pointed out by the petitioners.
“India has among the world’s highest gender gap in access to technology. Only 21% of women in India are mobile internet users, according to Global System for Mobile Communications Association’s 2020 mobile gender gap report, while 42% of men have internet access (Civilsdaily 2020). The report says that while 79% of men own a mobile phone in the country, the number for women is 63%. While there do exist economic barriers to girls owning a mobile phone or laptop, cultural and social norms also play a major part. The male–female gap in mobile use often exacerbates other inequalities for women, including access to information, economic opportunities, and networking.”
Source: Barandbench
