Times of India: New Delhi: Tuesday, April 22, 2014.
Education is
the key to leadership, and the backwardness of Muslims demonstrates a lack of
it.
The enrolment
of Muslim girls in schools has declined, but backwardness alone is not to blame
as the availability and accessibility of both public and private schools are
inadequate. Many Muslim parents have reported facing discrimination and visible
hostility from teachers and school authorities while trying to seek admission
for children.
The dismal
condition of government and municipal schools is no secret, so some Muslim
parents opt for madrassas over schools. "The teachers remain absent and
the quality of education is poor. It's better for children to attend madrassas
as these days they also impart (modern) education and students can get placed
as translators in Gulf countries," said Shariq Khan, a resident of
Seelampur. The BabulUloom Madrassa that has more than 180 students is a few
kilometres away from his residence.
A study by
the Institute of Objective Studies shows how Muslim children whose parents meet
criteria of income, proximity and educational background were denied admission
on flimsy grounds in formal schools.
In 2012,
social activist Abdul Khaliq used RTI to collect information about the number
of Muslim children enrolled in nursery in Delhi's private schools. "The
bias was clear. Of the 92 schools that provided information, 17 admitted only
one Muslim child each and around 20 had no Muslim student that year. The other
schools had only five or six students each," he said.
The study
claims that one reason for the high college dropout rate among Muslims is that
they study in nearby areas, and don't get to mix with children from other
communities at the school level. College delivers a culture shock. However,
enthusiasm for good English-medium secular education is strong in the
middleclass Muslim residents of these areas.
Kachchi
Khajuri that lies along the Pushta Road linking Delhi with Uttar Pradesh
demonstrates the plight of Muslim children. Across the road from it is Pucci
Khajuri, a Gujjar-dominated colony. Kachchi Khajuri is almost entirely a Muslim
area and does not have a Delhi government school. Its children attend school on
the other side where, besides schools, there are roads and covered drains.
In Okhla and
Zakir Nagar wards, people allege their children are asked whether they have
seen a terrorist, live next door to one, of if their father knows a member of
Indian Mujahideen.
"It's
really disturbing when parents come complaining about such questions, but with
whom can they take it up when profiling of children from this area is so
common," said Amanatullah Khan, AAP worker and a resident of Batla House.
There are
some success stories too. For instance, after the amazing transformation of
Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya-2, Zeenat Mahal, a century-old Urdu-medium school for
girls, parents no longer need to look for schools outside their area.
Until a few
years ago, the school ranked among the 200 worst-performing government schools
in Delhi with its pass percentage around 50%. But in 2008, its pass rate was
100% and it topped among non-Rajkiya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalayas (RPVV), standing
fifth among all government schools. The good work continues.