UN agencies have hailed India's newly enacted Right to Education Act, terming it an "essential step" towards bringing India, and hence the world closer to the Millineum Development Goals.
Key UN agencies have pointed out that without India, the world cannot reach the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of having every child complete primary school by 2015.
The UN agencies have also hailed the Right to Education Act, legalising the right to free and compulsory education for all children between the ages of 6 and 14 in India.
"This Act is an essential step towards improving each child's accessibility to secondary and higher education, bringing India closer to achieving national educational development goals, as well as the MDGs and Education for All (EFA)," said UNESCO New Delhi chief, Armoogum Parsuramen.
Eight million children between the ages of six to 14, a majority of whom are girls, are estimated to be out-of-school in India.
"Tens of millions of children will benefit from this initiative ensuring quality education with equity," said Karin Hulshof, UNICEF Representative in India.
"RTE will propel India to even greater heights of prosperity and productivity for all guaranteeing children their right to a quality education and a brighter future," she added.