Sports & Physical Activities Integral To Education, All Schools Must Have Playgrounds: Madras High Court

The court directed the state to constitute a committee to monitor and ensure that physical education is given due importance and requisite infrastructure in all schools is made available.

The committee shall be constituted by the Government within one month and shall be headed by the Secretary to the Government, School Education Department. The committee shall identify the schools not having requisite infrastructure for imparting physical education and ensure physical education is given necessary importance.

The bench of Chief Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari and Justice N Mala observed as under:

"At this juncture, it needs to be emphasised that sports and physical activities are integral to education, and therefore, infrastructure for sports is indispensable. Physical activity enhances the physical and mental strength of the student, apart from developing comradeship, instilling discipline and imbibing leadership qualities. The essence of physical education is overall development of the personality and spirit of a student. If such is the essence of sports, how can playgrounds be dispensed with in schools."

The petitioner had contended that the government had not given requisite attention to physical education as a subject in schools, which resulted in inadequate infrastructure in schools and lack of physical education teachers. He had referred to a newspaper report stating that only 40 out of 9,000 schools in Tamil Nadu hired physical education teacher.

The State, on the other hand, submitted a status report informing the court that physical education had been made compulsory in all schools and periodic monitoring of facilities was being conducted by the officials concerned. The state assured that the authorities had taken earnest efforts to ensure that physical education is given equal importance as other subjects and classes would be conducted encouraging physical activity.

The court perused the provisions of law emphasising on the significance of physical activities and sports infrastructure and directed the respondent authorities to ensure that these laws were implemented stricto sensu in CBSE, Matriculation and State Board. The court also directed the authorities to consider the request of schools for utilising public grounds of Municipality/Corporation.

The court further directed the authorities to ensure compliance to the Government Order mandating playgrounds as there were still a number of schools which did not have one.

"The mandate of Government order and the provisions of law should not remain a paper tiger. It is more so when the significance of the physical activity and sports infrastructure has been emphasised even under the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009."

Case Title: Dr. P R Subaschandran v. State and others

Case No: WP No. 17095 of 2018

Citation: 2022 LiveLaw (Mad) 378

Counsel for the Petitioner: Dr PR Subaschandran, Party-in-person

Counsel for the Respondents: Mr P Muthukumar, State Government Pleader (R1-R7)