PaRCha - JNU - AISA - 2009 ID-5537
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~ The RTE is nothing but a blatant attempt ofthe UPA government to shirk its responsibility to provide universal,affordable and quality education. For all practical purposes. through the RTE, the government is facilitating the hand-ing over ofgovernment schools to private ownership through public-private partnerships. Instead ofdoing this, shouldn'tthe state be working to set up better government schools? We all know how the rising fees ofprivateschools isputting a strain even on middle class budgets. The recent agitations in Delhi against the obscene fees chargedby private school s is proofenough. .
~ This is not the first time that the "free" schooljng has been promised-residents ofDelhi.are well aware that privateschools in the city were provided land practically free ofcost by the government, in return for which supposed to give"free" education to poor children. Exactly how many poor children are able to access these elite facilities is.
there for anyone to see. .
,_ .
.
What is even more absurd is that this Bill states that ifany citizen wishes to go to court against any private school. then.
he orshe must first take pennission from the requisite government authority.! Clearly, the state desires to lend itselfto.
supporting and protecting the interests ofthe already powerful private schools rather than a~tuallybringing in legislation.
to expand the domain ofeducation. .
Thus the RTE in its present form is a farce in the name ofgenuine right to education-it designed to keep in place thediscriminatory, multi-layered education system that currentlyprevails.What is also worth noting .is the near-consensus in.
the parliament to support the farce that the UPA is peddling in the name of"Right to Education". In both the Rajya Sabhaand the Lok Sabha, the RTE was passed unanimously with no opposition whatsoever. .
Sibal's 100 DayAgenda ofSelling-Out Education .
The farcical Right to Education Bill however isjust part ofthe larger package ofcommercialisation and privatizationthat the UPA government has in store. 100-day agenda announced by the Ministry ofHuman Resources Development(MHRD). Kapil Sibal has promised 'radical' reforms in the country's education system. As you arewell aware, the'reforms'in education which the MHRD is advocating are nothing new. They are but a ruse for the government toescape its responsibility towards education and deliver itentirely into private hands. More than a decade ofanti-privatizationstruggles by students have forced Governments to change their vocabulary; to 'dress up' theirprivatization-commercial-ization agenda in a grand cloak of'reform'. .
Kapil Sibal's I 00-day agenda also involves a concerted plan to hand over higher education to private and foreigninstitutions on a platter. There is talk ofimplementing the recommendations ofthe Yashpal Committee Report as wellas the National Knowledge Commission on "refonns" in Higher Education. Instead ofasking the government to takeresponsibility for providing education, these reports recommend: .
a) State-run regulatory bodies like the UGC, AICTE, and the MCI should be done away with. .
b) Vice-Chancellors ofuniversities should have 'other abilities' besides academic worth. These include the ability toencourage business interests to invest in the university. c) Universities should employ professional fund raisers d) A new regulatory body, the NCHER, should be constituted where at least one member must necessarily be aprominent member ofthe corporate world. .
e) Private and Foreign Education "providers" be given incentive to open campuses. .
The recommendations are unmistakable steps towards commercializing higher education. However, theextremely clever language that has been used is aimed to delude even some well-meaning people into believing that thereports are genuinely concerned with 'rejuvenating, education. These reports have actually turned the very definition of'autonomy' upside down. Now, autonomy is the freedom for the merchants ofeducation to freely amass profits and freethe government from the responsibility ofproviding affordable education..
AlSA appeals to the students and people ofthis country to expose and defeat this agenda without delay. strengthen the.
campaign against the farcical Right to Education Bill in its Present form and against Kapil Sibal's dangero~scommercial-.
ization agenda. .
It is in the context ofthe UPA government's covert plans to sell out our education system to the private; sector in bits.
and pieces that theAll India Forum for Right to Education (AIFRTE) and AISAare organizing a Public Hearingon 71h August 2009 (Friday) at JantarMantar from 11 am onwards. We appeal to you to participate in this pubichearing will be attended by a wide cross section ofsociety-intellectUals, teachers, students, and residents ofDelhi fromdifferent sections ofsociety. .
Sucheta, Gen. Secy., AISA, JNU Vismay, Jt.Secy, AISA. JNlJ .
.. .
'Hi . .
,·n ..
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-, .
.
.
.
PaRCha - JNU - AISA - 2009 ID-5537
.
. I .. , .
;,.
' ..-. ·. .
' l: ·: .·i~-iiW ·~: ' .
., .
" "!1.
.. 111 lf..
4: .. ' .
I~· -.
.. ., .,.
., : ;; .. .
.
·.
~ The RTE is nothing but a blatant attempt ofthe UPA government to shirk its responsibility to provide universal,affordable and quality education. For all practical purposes. through the RTE, the government is facilitating the hand-ing over ofgovernment schools to private ownership through public-private partnerships. Instead ofdoing this, shouldn'tthe state be working to set up better government schools? We all know how the rising fees ofprivateschools isputting a strain even on middle class budgets. The recent agitations in Delhi against the obscene fees chargedby private school s is proofenough. .
~ This is not the first time that the "free" schooljng has been promised-residents ofDelhi.are well aware that privateschools in the city were provided land practically free ofcost by the government, in return for which supposed to give"free" education to poor children. Exactly how many poor children are able to access these elite facilities is.
there for anyone to see. .
,_ .
.
What is even more absurd is that this Bill states that ifany citizen wishes to go to court against any private school. then.
he orshe must first take pennission from the requisite government authority.! Clearly, the state desires to lend itselfto.
supporting and protecting the interests ofthe already powerful private schools rather than a~tuallybringing in legislation.
to expand the domain ofeducation. .
Thus the RTE in its present form is a farce in the name ofgenuine right to education-it designed to keep in place thediscriminatory, multi-layered education system that currentlyprevails.What is also worth noting .is the near-consensus in.
the parliament to support the farce that the UPA is peddling in the name of"Right to Education". In both the Rajya Sabhaand the Lok Sabha, the RTE was passed unanimously with no opposition whatsoever. .
Sibal's 100 DayAgenda ofSelling-Out Education .
The farcical Right to Education Bill however isjust part ofthe larger package ofcommercialisation and privatizationthat the UPA government has in store. 100-day agenda announced by the Ministry ofHuman Resources Development(MHRD). Kapil Sibal has promised 'radical' reforms in the country's education system. As you arewell aware, the'reforms'in education which the MHRD is advocating are nothing new. They are but a ruse for the government toescape its responsibility towards education and deliver itentirely into private hands. More than a decade ofanti-privatizationstruggles by students have forced Governments to change their vocabulary; to 'dress up' theirprivatization-commercial-ization agenda in a grand cloak of'reform'. .
Kapil Sibal's I 00-day agenda also involves a concerted plan to hand over higher education to private and foreigninstitutions on a platter. There is talk ofimplementing the recommendations ofthe Yashpal Committee Report as wellas the National Knowledge Commission on "refonns" in Higher Education. Instead ofasking the government to takeresponsibility for providing education, these reports recommend: .
a) State-run regulatory bodies like the UGC, AICTE, and the MCI should be done away with. .
b) Vice-Chancellors ofuniversities should have 'other abilities' besides academic worth. These include the ability toencourage business interests to invest in the university. c) Universities should employ professional fund raisers d) A new regulatory body, the NCHER, should be constituted where at least one member must necessarily be aprominent member ofthe corporate world. .
e) Private and Foreign Education "providers" be given incentive to open campuses. .
The recommendations are unmistakable steps towards commercializing higher education. However, theextremely clever language that has been used is aimed to delude even some well-meaning people into believing that thereports are genuinely concerned with 'rejuvenating, education. These reports have actually turned the very definition of'autonomy' upside down. Now, autonomy is the freedom for the merchants ofeducation to freely amass profits and freethe government from the responsibility ofproviding affordable education..
AlSA appeals to the students and people ofthis country to expose and defeat this agenda without delay. strengthen the.
campaign against the farcical Right to Education Bill in its Present form and against Kapil Sibal's dangero~scommercial-.
ization agenda. .
It is in the context ofthe UPA government's covert plans to sell out our education system to the private; sector in bits.
and pieces that theAll India Forum for Right to Education (AIFRTE) and AISAare organizing a Public Hearingon 71h August 2009 (Friday) at JantarMantar from 11 am onwards. We appeal to you to participate in this pubichearing will be attended by a wide cross section ofsociety-intellectUals, teachers, students, and residents ofDelhi fromdifferent sections ofsociety. .
Sucheta, Gen. Secy., AISA, JNU Vismay, Jt.Secy, AISA. JNlJ .
.. .
'Hi . .
,·n ..
' ' .
-.
,--"' .
-, .
.
.
.