Double Ducker train to Chennai!

Recently I had been to Chennai by train, the newly introduced ‘Double Ducker’. I heard through

media that it is the most cost effective transport for a common man with air conditioned coaches.

It is just not even one month after the introduction of the special train.

It is so sad to say that the maintenance of this train is much worst than the trains available for

Bangalore passengers. The polythene papers raped all over the seat legs were torn and full of dust

accumulated! The lid of almost all waste bins provided (inbuilt) has come out. The waste dumped is

started jumping out. The toilets are horrible. Neither the fittings nor the inside area are in usable

condition. The mosquitoes under the seats are miserable!

The catering staff has to be educated first. The teas they serve are leaving the spilled tea all over the

passage. Sir to whom shall we compliant? If the trains are cleaned once in a day this would have

been in better condition.

No wonder within another month time the ‘Double Ducker’ will also become one among the south

Indian Trains breading cockroaches, rats, bed bugs and so on..

Will this note help the authorities to open their eyes?

SK.Nair

Supreme Court Judgement 'the axe on the much appreciated RTE Act'

Supreme Court Judgement 'the axe on the much appreciated RTE Act'.

The recent order passed by the Supreme Court exempting the minority institutions from giving 25% seats for economically disadvantaged and compulsory medium of instruction  Kannada in the primary level classes is to be viewed with a great vision and not with the law binding on it.

Giving exemption for minority institutions does not at all deserve. 50% of unaided and aided institutions are having the status of minority in this country. Almost all are  run by Husband and Wife under the shade of  the Indian  Trust Act.  More than 50% of the institutions are run by collecting heavy amount towards fees. They are all availing all tax relief and other facilities. How can they be exempted from giving 25% seats to the economically weaker children? The Supreme court with this order is endorsing that these economically weaker section children are not fit enough to sit with the children of the upper class society!

The much appreciated scheme implemented by the UPA government is being quashed by this order. Now the only institutions run by the management who are not coming under these minorities are only bound to do this. For that also the law will find some other loopholes to get exemption in the near future.

It is sure that this will be appreciated by all school managements because the operation during the previous years was in such a way that the government officials were using this only to collect bribe. The official’s in-charge for giving an income certificate will issue the same fearlessly for any amount as you desired – only depends on the bribe you offer. The Education Department officials had set a team for collection of bribe for bringing the name of the child in the list. Many of the School management stood as a silent witness. The real and genuine parents were running from school to BEO’s office and then pillar to pillar! 

The application forms along with relevant income proof under RTE were submitted by the influential parents personally   to the schools in their own Scorpio and Innova cars which clearly shows that they are well to do!  In many places the school management has taken this as a chance to put their known children also in this list influencing the Education department staff!

That is the growth of RTE! But now the minority institutions are escaped!

There are religious and linguistic minorities!  A trust comprising of Husband and wife is enough to get this status- either linguistic or religious!

In 1994 State government had made Kannada (or mother tongue) as compulsory in primary classes;  ie up to fourth standard in the schools recognized by the State Government.  This is the high time that we should analyze  whether this was implemented sincerely or not?  All schools aided or unaided continued teaching in English! Of course the parents were insisting to teach in English. The situation has been taken by the department of education only to collect bribe. They started collecting Rs.500/- on-words for giving an inspection report stating that the medium of instruction of this school is in Kannada!

We shall hopefully wait for a time :

·         =Wherein a child in India gets the preliminary knowledge on their own language - the language of their heart- to have a basic knowledge in their life (To enable them to write a full sentence without mistakes in any language!)

·         =Where in the School fees and syllabus and the language policy in India is fixed by the government of India to confirm that the running of a school is not to make money.  

·         =The government to think about giving free education at-least in the primary level  by taking over the private schools and stopping the private agencies to continue this BUSINESS, upholding the fundamental right of a child to get the free education.

SK NAIR

Closing of government Schools in Karnataka?

Closing of government Schools in Karnataka?

The step to close a considerable number of government schools has been initiated years back in Karnataka. However the move to do so is getting geared up now. The reason quoting is the less number of students.  And the effect of this move is appearing in some other shape in our state and in the neighbouring states. The aided schools started preparing for close down! State Government shall soon engage an expert team to find out the ways and means to support the existence of the Government Schools and the State aided schools considering the beneficiaries – the children from economically weaker and the villages and other rural areas.

One side government is trying to make the primary education compulsory and free for the poor through various Act and Rules like RTE. Unfortunately the other side the responsible officials of the department of education itself is taking steps to close down the public schools; may be to reduce their work load?    

The state government has initiated the project ‘Adoption of School’. But how many schools have been adopted so far? The basic concept of adoption and the privileges given to the individual or establishment who adopts the school are not at all attractive! They are treated as the investors without any benefits of social status or finance.  We can very well understand that the rules for adopting a school are framed in such a way that nobody should come forward for it!

The basic intention of closing down of the government schools is to help the aided school management. All most all aided schools want to close their institutions as early as possible because most of them are situated at the prime localities where the real-estate value is booming like anything! They don’t have any income as such, other than the throw away amount given as the grant in aid and they are in pathetic condition. They don’t have any income. They had become the custodian of their prime property without even the market rent!

Their forefathers donated their property and invested huge amount for constructing the institution with an interest of providing education to the generations. They were facing heavy financial crunch all over their life. They might have utilized their personal income to run the school just because of their charity. Now their successors are being punished by the government. They are not even getting the rent amount in par with the market rate. The meager amount what they are getting as grant from the government will not be sufficient for doing white wash even. The amount of grant given by the government is based on the number of students.  The number of admissions will be depending on the quality of education given. The government should think seriously and deeply why the parents are unwilling to send their children to government schools or aided schools. The aided school management is helpless in taking action on the teachers. The situation in government school is familiar to everybody. Teachers find more time to do their own business than teaching. It is true that the unaided schools are doing well. They can collect lakhs or rupees for even nursery classes as tuition fees, donations etc. Government doesn’t have any control on them, or the control is to collect bribe from them. Any rules and regulations can be managed with bribes in the department of public instruction!

 The Government shall soon engage an expert team to find out the ways and means to support the existence of the Government Schools and the State aided schools considering the beneficiaries – the poor children from different walks of life. The RTE alone cannot support for the prime cause of providing primary education free fair and compulsory.

SK Nair