People's Democracy

AS we go to press, the Parliament has begun considering the 93^rd amendment to the Indian Constitution making education a fundamental right for all children in the age group of 6 to 14 years. Through these columns last week, we had pointed out that notwithstanding the laudable intentions, the Bill contains severe shortcomings and drawbacks which may well curtail the spread of quality education. Apart from making no commitment whatsoever for increased financial allocations, the government slowly but surely is abdicating its responsibility for providing quality education and passing the onus on to the parents. It seeks to circumvent the woeful inadequacy of schools and resources to meet the requirements in an ingenious manner. Instead of children going to school, it seeks to take schools to the children!! In other words, instead of teacher in a classroom, it will be the postman who will deliver correspondence lectures. Instead of the teacher, one may have a TV set dishing out knowledge. Since this can happen at home as well, soon we shall find Mr. Murli Manohar Joshi prancing about the country, claiming crores of children have been educated because they watch the TV!

Apart from all other shortcomings, it is this aspect of providing informal and distant education instead of a proper class room teacher-student relationship that assumes greater danger under the present Vajpayee government dispensation. Already, as the proceedings in Parliament on the Talibanisation of education has shown, the BJP is leaving no stone unturned to communalise and rewrite Indian history.

Various Saffron outfits have gone to the extent of suggesting dress codes for girl students, a la Taliban's imposition of similar norms in Afghanistan earlier. The Taliban's destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas and the Saffron Brigade's demolition of the Babri Masjid are, therefore, not the only commonality between the two.

The increasing private avenues for education, as a consequence of this Bill, will be sought to be utilised by the communal forces to carry out their agenda further. A dangerous clause in the Bill states that the right to education may be provided "in such manner as the State may, by law, determine". This is clearly meant to have a proper education system for the well to do and woefully inadequate system for the poor. Education, thus, is going to become more of a privilege than what it already is.

Under this Vajpayee government, therefore, it is not only the content and quality of education that is being undermined and distorted. The access to education is also sought to be confined to those who can afford it. Human resources, India's biggest asset, instead of being nourished are being squandered. Further, with the RSS at the helm of affairs, the quality of education that is sought to be provided, apart from distorting history, breeds an inward looking bigotry and intolerance. For the sake of India, as we know of it today, this cannot be allowed.