People's Democracy

UNIVERSAL EDUCATION, INTELLECTUAL SELF-RELIANCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

SFI Submits Five Million Signatures To PM

FIVE million signatures collected by the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) from the student community across the country on its 11-point charter of demands during its recent countrywide jathas were submitted to the prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh on January 22, 2007.

A delegation of SFI leaders comprising of its general secretary K K Ragesh and joint secretaries Ritabrata Banerjee, P K Biju and Albeena Shakil along with former SFI president and CPI(M) leader in Rajya Sabha Sitaram Yechury met the prime minister and submitted these signatures along with a memorandum. They urged him to address these pressing issues facing the student community of the country.

The prime minister during his discussion with the delegation commented that the UPA government’s spending on education would reach 6 per cent of the GDP by the end of its tenure. At a press conference held a day after the meeting the SFI leaders welcomed this stand of the prime minister saying this has been one of its long pressing demands.

The prime minister also assured the delegation that a NDC meeting, entirely on education, will be convened during the middle of this year in which the government desires to discuss with the chief ministers about the mode of implementation of the Right to Education Bill.

The SFI leaders pointed out that from the conversation with the prime minister it was clear that the UPA government is keen on allowing FDI in education. “SFI strongly opposes this move and will undertake broader struggles to prevent it”, they asserted.

SFI general secretary K K Ragesh also announced that countrywide agitations demanding increase in budgetary allocation for education will be organised on February 22. Demonstrations would be held at local level also demanding implementation of increased budget allocation to education made in the Common Minimum Programme.

The following is the full text of the memorandum submitted to the prime minister by the SFI:

The Students’ Federation of India undertook two All India Jathas in the months of November and December 2006 for Universal Education, Intellectual Self-Reliance and Social Justice. The Jathas covered 7464 educational institutions and 69,66,000 students across different states, and received wide support from all sections of the academic community in general and the student community in particular. We hereby submit to you the 5 million signatures collected from the student community on our 11-point Charter of Demands with an urgent appeal to address the following pressing issues:

1. Constitute National Commission on Education: Subsequent to the Kothari Commission in 1964, no comprehensive education commission has come into force. Different sectors of education like pre-school, primary, secondary, higher secondary, professional and higher education have developed without any holistic planning. An enormous private sector in education (self-financing professional institutes, coaching institutes, schools) has come into force, without any government checks and controls to prevent crass profiteering, or uphold quality and access to education. The vocational education sector too seems rudderless. Hastily formulated policies like awarding deemed university status to many private players has increased the vulnerability of our higher education sector for exploitation by communal as well as commercial interests. Social disparities in the access to education are also alarming. In times when half of our population is less than 25 years of age, there exists a pressing need to address the vast educational demands of our country’s population. We urgently appeal to you to constitute a National Commission on Education, comprising of eminent academics to ensure that equity, quality and quantity in all sectors of education are improved in a planned manner. 

2. Implement Reservations in All Educational Institutions: The UPA governments’ decision to implement 27 per cent OBC reservations in all central educational institutes is a welcome step. This move must be implemented without delay. However, the true intention of the 93rd amendment to the Constitution was to ensure reservation in private institutions and hence such legislation must be enacted immediately. Additionally, the fulfillment of the SC/ST quota must be ensured since the total enrollment of SC/ST students in education still falls below the stipulated target. 

3. Increase Opportunities for Higher Education: India has the third largest higher education system in the world in terms of enrollment and largest in terms of number of institutions. However, only 7-8 per cent of India’s’ population in the age group of 17-23 years is enrolled in higher education. The public investment in higher education is only 0.37 per cent of the GDP. Per student public expenditure on higher education stands at a meagre Rs 17,924 which is low in comparison to other South Asian countries. Additionally, of the total students enrolled in higher education, nearly one-third are studying in unaided private institutions. The 54 per cent seat increase accompanying the implementation of 27 per cent OBC reservations in central institutions will lead to a marginal increase in the enrollment of the relevant age group of 17-23 years in higher education. In order to strengthen and uphold the intellectual self-reliance of our country through quality research, we appeal to you to increase the public expenditure on higher education and increase the opportunities for higher education for all. There is also need to focus on improving excellence in higher education.

4. Enact Central Legislation to Regulate Fees and Admission in Private Professional Institutes and Private Deemed Universities: At a time when reports of suicides of students due to inability to pay high fees in private self-financing institutions are becoming very common, the UPA government is yet to meet the promise of enacting a central legislation to control private professional institutions. SFI leaders were given an assurance that the central legislation would be enacted during the last budget session and that all tribulations in the professional education sector would be resolved before the current academic session. The State Education Ministers’ Conference held at Bangalore arrived at a consensus on the central legislation question. However, the union ministry of HRD has continued to show neglect. Today various High Courts and even the Supreme Court are hearing a plethora of petitions regarding self-financing institutions. To put an end to this endless saga of litigations the government must step in and play its designated role of protecting the interests of the student community and the people at large. The UPA must implement its promise made in the CMP to “ensure that nobody is denied professional education because he or she is poor.” 

5. Central Government Must Enact the Right to Education Bill: Over 2 crore children do not receive primary education in our country. The Draft of the Right to Education Bill 2005, aimed at correcting this situation, invited severe criticism from various quarters for the dilution of several crucial provisions. However, the proposed Model Right to Education Bill 2006 further dilutes many provisions of the 2005 Draft Bill. Most importantly, the provision in the Draft Bill of reserving at least 25 per cent free seats for poor children in private schools has been done away with. The entire section on the central government’s responsibility in the Draft Bill, including the provision of financial assistance to the states, has been deleted. The provision for constituting the National Commission for Elementary Education contained in the Draft Bill, meant to monitor the implementation of the Act, has also been removed. Additionally, the government is making its continuing assistance to the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, conditional upon the state governments’ acceptance of the new proposed Bill in toto. Such a move will ultimately defeat the very purpose of the Right to Education Bill. We demand that the Right to Education Bill be enacted without further delay. 

6. Spend 6 per cent of GDP or 10 per cent of the Central Budget on Education: The CMP states that “The UPA government pledges to raise public spending in education to least 6 per cent of GDP with at least half this amount being spent on primary and secondary sectors.” The cess on all central taxes to finance primary education is a welcome step. However, instead of increasing the overall expenditure on education, a false debate between prioritising primary or higher education has dominated financial planning for education. The international average of central budgetary allocation for education is about 10.15 per cent and in India it is only 4.18 per cent. We urge upon you to fulfill the promise of spending 6 per cent of the GDP on education without further delay. 

7. Stop Private and Foreign Universities and FDI in Education. Protect Intellectual Self-Reliance and Resist Imperialist Onslaught on Education: The department of commerce, government of India has circulated a Consultation Paper on “Higher Education in India and GATS” revealing plans to allow Foreign Universities and FDI in education. The Consultation Paper also stipulates that “adequate flexibility” must be provided to “such universities in setting syllabus, hiring teachers, screening students and setting fee levels.” The goal of producing Indian professionals for “multinational companies” through proposed Foreign Universities and FDI in education is a grim reminder of colonial educational policies. Universities have the responsibility of creating knowledge for the entire society. They are the dwelling places of ideas and idealism. If our university system is opened to foreign and private players, it will be to the detriment of our intellectual self-reliance. The experience of private universities in our country is already very bitter. Allowing FDI in education and Foreign Universities will in effect provide legitimacy to private universities and create a parallel higher education system in our country at a high monetary and social cost. We demand that all such moves by the union government be abandoned without delay. The SFI stands completely opposed to any such move. 

8. Ensure Good Academic Atmosphere in All Campuses: Educational institutions lack quality infrastructure like proper classrooms, drinking water facility, sanitation facility, transport facility, hostels, adequate teachers, modern educational tools etc. All these adversely impact the academic atmosphere in existing educational institutions. We demand a good academic atmosphere in all campuses.

9. Ensure Democratic Rights for Students: The Apex Court recently directed all state governments to implement the Lyngdoh Committee recommendations, i.e., hold students’ union elections in all campuses. Even after the Supreme Court verdict, many state governments and various education institutions are still reluctant in implementing the same. The situation in private institutions is worse. The UPA government must initiate steps to hold students’ union elections in all educational institutions without delay.

10. Implement promises of the CMP: The CMP of the UPA government states that 6 per cent of the GDP will be spent on education, a National Commission on Education will be set up, the trends of communalisation will be reversed, appointments related to education will be based solely on academic excellence and professional competence and the ICDS will be universalised. The educational cess has been directed towards the mid-day meal scheme and the Sarva Siksha Abhiyan, though it remains inadequate. Apart from the promises made in the CMP regarding education, we demand that all promises of the CMP be fulfilled without delay for the betterment of the people of the entire country.

11. Constitute Committees Against Sexual Harassment in All Campuses: The Supreme Court Guideline in the Vishaka Vs State of Rajasthan 1997 directs all workplaces including educational institutions to constitute committees against sexual harassment, comprising of 50 per cent women, headed by a woman and having a third-party NGO. The instances of sexual harassment are on the rise in our country. We demand that such committees be constituted without delay.