Bihar's Opposition- condoning manslaughter?

A few days ago, the local newspapers in Bihar carried reports of a burn victim dying a painful death because the ambulance carrying her was caught up in a ‘traffic jam’ on the rickety Mahatma Gandhi Setu, the bridge that joins Patna to North Bihar.

The woman died because the Home Guards, an auxiliary security force, had blocked the bridge in protest. They were demanding benefits from the Bihar Government. These men turned a deaf ear to the pleas of the ambulance driver and the people who were in the ambulance. They wilfully obstructed an ambulance that according to law had the absolute right of way. If anybody is to be held responsible for the death of that woman, it is the organizers and the men from the Home Guards who were obstructing traffic. Logic says that a criminal case should have been slapped on them.

 It was sickening to read reports in the newspapers the next day, where the protestors, backed by the opposition BJP sought to blame the state government for the woman's death.  Was this a sick joke? By what stretch of warped logic could one come to such a conclusion? Worse still, the papers who faithfully carried the statement, so far haven't had the decency to question the logic even on the editorial pages!

 

Have our politicians sunk so low? Is heckling the government and encouraging others to do so their only game?  You condone uncivilized and brutish behaviour -such as the obstruction of an ambulance carrying a burn patient in a critical condition on a hot summer’s day - on the one hand, and complain of ‘Jungle raj’ returning to Bihar on the other!

 The BJP (and others in the opposition)  would have done the  honourable thing if they had strongly taken on  the government  for  going soft on the ringleaders, and failing to punish the fellows who were actually responsible for manslaughter because they obstructed the ambulance, with the full knowledge that the patient inside would die unless she received immediate treatment.

 

Why are two separate issues being muddied up? And why is the present government and the administration letting this happen? Why hasn't the Nitish Kumar administration really shown some 'testosterone' and booked a couple of those protestors for manslaughter?  

Why is it that whenever there is some 'political' support, a 'legitimate' protest becomes an occasion to threaten, beat-up, smash and vent anger on inanimate objects and harmless individuals?

 

The right to lawful protest is one thing, causing harmful obstruction and destroying government and private property are entirely different. They are cowardly, criminal offences.

 

Why are all political parties blind to this? 'This is an election year' isn't the right answer!

 

Author: Frank Krishner

Let Dalits who want reservation remain Hindus

A vocal section of the Catholic Church in India, has, for some two decades now trying to get ‘Dalit Christians’ recognized as one of the scheduled castes in India. Now, these scheduled castes are usually formerly untouchable Hindus who get certain privileges above ‘general’ citizens.



This is a stupid picture, isn't it? No? Think about it!

 Recently there have been anguished outpourings from no less than veteran media person and Indian Catholic leader John Dayal that  the present dispensation [read the government of India led by Narendra Modi] are going to ignore that longstanding demand.

 If the Prime Minister Modi once and for all totally rejects this impassioned plea, several thousand Christians would actually be pleased. Very pleased.

 This nonsense about caste -based reservations is political clap-trap. I maintain that the demand is totally un-Chrisian and subversive. Historically, and biblically, one does not deserve to become a Christian ‘the easy way’. If a Dalit chooses to join the church and be ‘equal’ to those high caste Christians who have literally ‘forsaken all’ to embrace the faith, then let him forsake the government benefits which are for Hindus. If he can’t do that, then what the dickens is he in it for? For free access to Christian educational and medical institutions? that shouldn’t be a problem anyway, because Christian, especially church run institutions are supposed to reach out to the poorest of the poor, no matter who they are.

Let the Dalits who want reservation remain Hindus. Those who want to 'convert' must reject reservation. It is a moral choice. I would say that we should encourage such wishy-washy chaps to opt for 'Ghar Wapsi'!

 

Let them choose between material benefit and spiritual benefit in the same way as several other high caste ‘converts’ have. When a Brahmin or a Rajput person decides to become a Christian, are the Christian  priests unaware of the great risks they take? Friends, and most importantly, their own families treat them as outcastes. Even so, knowingly, they accept the cross, both literally and figuratively. Its very interesting how the catholic  priests  and bishops are extremely careful when high caste people want to get baptized and publicly state that they wish to join the Church.  They actually discourage them.

 

This pro-Dalit casteism within the Catholic Church has rankled and continues to rankle many. The Church was built on the blood of martyrs. However misguided they may have been, it is the fact that hundreds and thousands of people were ready to lay down their lives rather than do a Ghar Wapsi. This ghar wapsi stuff was tried by the ancient Romans: recant your beliefs and here’s a life of luxury, follow this new ideology called Christianity and be torn apart by lions.

 

[By the way, Latin “christianus” meant cretin; the Romans used to throw Christians to the lions, and because the Christian martyrs refused to give up their religion, to run away, or even to fight back, they were thought to be acting like complete idiots.

 Throughout the Roman Empire (i.e. the civilised world), if someone was stupid, they were called “Christian”. The word meant that.]

Coming from a lineage that can claim that an ancestor or two was executed by Henry VIII rather than switch allegiance from the Pope, I find this pandering to the so-called  Dalit Christians particularly nauseating. What is more disturbing is the fact that there are a lot of chaps who are ‘officially’ getting government benefits as Hindus while masquerading as Christians and getting handouts from the Church as well.

In the Catholic Church there is no ‘Dalit reservation’ -- or is there a lobby  led by a few Jesuits and Diocesan priests that wants to give reservations to guys so that they become ‘dalit pastors’ even though they are morally, spiritually  and intellectually wanting? 

I have a great love for Dalits and want them to evolve as soon as possible into efficient, tax-paying citizens of the country, with dignity and without having to play the victim always. Being an agnostic, I have an unbiased attitude towards all religions, and do find it extremely silly when some of my Catholic priest friends become misty eyed over the perceived injustices to the Musahars, but are stone cold to the problems and the tribulations of the poorer sections of Christians such as those from Bettiah, Goa, or the Anglo-Indians.

 

The Modi government would do well to curb any more ‘reservations’. We’ve had enough. Modi should firmly deny any such benefits to the so-called  Dalit Christians.  If Brahmin and Rajput Christians don’t get minority benefits, why should they?

 

Author: Frank Krishner

Bihar State AIDS Control Society doesn't give a damn about Mothers!

It’s Mothers’ Day today.

And what does a poor, sick mother in the boondocks of Bihar, desperately trying to ensure that her HIV positive orphaned child gets his essential daily dose of life-saving meds get? Insensitivity, buck-passing and indolence by the government medical fraternity and the Bihar State AIDS Control Society!

 On Thursday May 7, [incidentally observed as AIDS Orphans Day, part of the annual global aids awareness week], a desperate 25 year old widow in Chapra (Bihar state)was running from pillar to post in a frantic bid to obtain the next dose of ART for her 8 year old son. An HIV positive person needs to take the prescribed medicine daily, just like a daily insulin dose for diabetics. If the dose is missed, even for a day, the immune system of the patient starts deteriorating. The people at the ART dispensing centre were helpless, stocks were over. (The special ART formulation for children is given in a syrup form.) When the woman, in desperation went to submit a written intimation to the Nodal Medical Officer, pleading that the medicine be made available, she was brushed aside. The doctor refused to accept her application!

 The woman, a widow on her own, who somehow ekes out a living working in one of those hole-in-the wall ‘ private schools’, is distraught. For the past five days, she has abandoned her work, running to and from the dispensing centre. The irony is that the medication can only be obtained from the government centre and no private chemist shops in Chapra stock the medicine, which is very expensive.

 “I went to get the medicines on the 4th, a day before the last dose ran out. (This is the practice. Patients are given medicines for a month only, and they can’t ask for any advance stocks). There was no medicine available. My child is on ART since 2011. What’s worrying me is that in January, when a CD-4 count was done, his platelet count had dropped to 311 from 1100. I’m desperate,” she said over the phone.

 Exactly 14 days ago, I happened to visit the Chapra ART centre with RTI activist Sanjeet Singh, where the personnel us that stocks were low. “We are just not receiving adequate stocks from BSACS, and we struggle to do what we can,” they said.

 “The High Court has decreed that every ART centre should have a two month stock of ART medicines and medicines for opportunistic infections, but despite assurances from BSACS officials, see the situation!” says Sanjeet.

 In Chapra, the situation is overwhelming. 4200 registrations, ART 2,900 total counting. Last month 1748 patients received ART. There are about 150 children on ART. NACO guidelines are not met. BSACS has not appointed the required staff. Only 4 posts out of 14 are filled. No Medical Officer for the ART and ICTC centre, so obviously, no ‘accountable’ official! There is no CD4 testing machine, even though NACO funds were there for one unit in each district, it is said.


How does the State, and BSACS, which gets funding from the Centre ensure safe motherhood? Probably by twiddling their thumbs and looking the other way!

this is NOT a photo of the widow.... for representation only

BSACS is supposed to provide ‘safe delivery kits’ at all its PPTCT centres. Reality check: That doesn’t happen. Pregnant women have to buy their own ‘safe delivery kits’ from private stores in Patna because the hospital has no stock. “We advise them to take precautions, because many of them end up having home deliveries. Even when they have go to the government hospitals, if they bring along their own kits, it can pre-empt any refusal by the nurses not to deliver the babies for lack of safety kits,” said PPTCT Counsellor Sadhna. A kit costs about Rs 750, and add on the cost of a trip to the state capital, just to buy the kit!

HIV positive pregnant women are denied surgery at Chapra. This was told to me by the PPCTC counsellor. She said that because there is only one OT for caesarean sections in the district hospital, there would be ‘complications’ if an HIV positive C-section was performed. So the pregnant woman is told to be prepared to make the long trip to the Patna Medical College Hospital, over 120 kilometres away, in case a C-section is called for. When we asked the resident gynaecologist at the district hospital about this, all she said was, “I am aware that we have delivered babies from HIV positive mothers, and as for C-sections, so far, no such case has been brought to my notice.”

The woman says “My child is the only reason I am living, if he dies, I am nothing, I might as well destroy myself.”

Just as I was putting the finishing touches to this article, I received a phone call from Sanjeet Singh, the activist. The ART medicines have finally arrived at the Chapra centre on Friday. The 25 year old widow can breathe easy, for one more month… Happy Mothers’ Day!


But, for how long will the State Government and BSACS flout the orders of the High Court? Instead of getting on with the procurement of medicines, will they try to pass the buck if summoned to court once again?









Author: Frank Krishner

A haunting experience

[Okay folks, you've read the truncated version in this Sunday's Times of India, Patna Edition. Now here's the full version with the original title...]

 

The last day of October was the day that Patna reluctantly limped back to work after the days of Chhat Puja that followed the Diwali festival. Last  Friday night, a few unsuspecting folk who meandered down New Patliputra Colony  almost jumped out of their skins when they encountered a two flesh eating zombies, a vampire, two witches and assorted monsters  hanging around  outside a couple of houses. An elderly man walking his dog was so fascinated at the sight that he  stood transfixed and took in the scene for a full five minutes before walking on. Halloween has finally come to town!

A couple of years ago, a voluntary organization hosted a small Halloween themed fund raiser in aid of kids from dysfunctional families. This year, a few spots around Patna, mainly private homes, did thrown a Halloween party or two. Scary costumes, food and games, candy and fun is the local version of the festival. ‘Trick-or-treating’ of course is not possible.  Yet. “Trick or treating is when you go up to houses, ring the bell, and ask for candy,” explained Mithun, one of the vampires haunting the street, “obviously we can’t do that in Patna, many Bihari bhais don’t have a sense of humour, so you will see the sight of a poor vampire being chased down the streets by a frenzied mob of irate flat-owners.

“Haunting the street for a few minutes was fun, though. The stunned, curious, surprised, and even scared looks on the faces of passers-by were priceless,” said a lady bank officer in a party mask. “It was my very first Halloween party, and I enjoyed it!”

Apart from Halloween being the second most commercial  holiday in the US raking in some $ 2 billion during Halloween, so it’s likely that we’ll see more of this thing happening once the commercial establishments catch on. Sweet and chocolate are consumed in large amounts, so confectioners and dentists will be very happy, quipped a reveller.

But how do you manage to have a Halloween party in Patna? “Internet shopping comes to your rescue, and there’s enough of things locally available if you keep a sharp lookout, “says a local party organizer. “Local confectioners are quite capable of baking innovative Halloween cakes if you show them a sample picture. Only this time the chat celebration meant that all the bakeries were closed for almost four days, so we had to forgo a sinfully rich chocolate cake. Otherwise, pranks and gags, scary masks, and simple dressing up aids can be bought over ebay or amazon.”

Collect interesting stuff wherever you get it: gothic tattoos with skulls and dragons, pirate badges that come at 10 rupees each, those very realistic collections of plastic creepy crawlies… they all serve to make your party memorable, and you an source them from any small store. My own favourite is a tiny place in Kurji called ‘Prabhat Tara’, the shopkeeper there has oodles of stuff that kids love: strange flavoured candies and other cool stuff that can go well with your scary night.

Some history: “Hallowmas” was a three-day Catholic festival where saints were honoured and people pray for the recently deceased. In the  11th century, the Pope decreed  that it would last from Oct. 31 (All Hallow's Eve) until Nov. 2 (All souls Day), most likely because in that era the Pope wanted to counter the influence of the ‘Samhain  festival’ which was celebrated around that time. According to folklorist John Santino, the exact nature of Samhain is not fully understood, but it was an annual community event at the end of the harvest, a time to gather resources for the winter months and bring animals back from the pastures. Samhain is also thought to have been a time of communing with the dead.

"There was a belief that it was a day when spirits of the dead would cross over into the other world," Santino says.  Halloween provides a safe way to play with the concept of death. People dress up as the living dead, and so on.  "All Hallow's Eve" then evolved into "All Hallow's Even," and by the 18th century it was commonly referred to as "Hallowe'en."

Author: Frank Krishner

Bihar SACS: bouquet of broken promises?

You just can’t beat the ingenuity of low-level government functionaries in Bihar who want to shirk responsibility and foil attempts to bring them to book. No matter what promises and undertakings the Bihar Government has made to the Patna High Court, people living with HIV are still at the receiving end of discrimination, abuse and neglect, caused by the very people being paid to assist them.

In 2010, the then health minister of Bihar had told them ‘why should we bother about you’? Left with no other option, Sanjeet Singh and other doughty HIV positive people, with the help of public spirited lawyers, moved the High Court at Patna. Hearing after hearing, and one by one, each judgement brought some relief, as the Bihar government and BSACS acknowledged their responsibility to provide treatment and relief to people living with HIV [PLHA], especially those from the labouring classes.



Sanjeet Singh: soldiering on...

The State government committed that the supply of life-saving ART drugs would be maintained faithfully, that the ART centres for HIV positive people would be made hygienic and equipped with toilets, that special schemes for children living with HIV would be formulated. Four years on, with the assurances given to the High court remaining largely on paper, with HIV positive patients still being ridiculed, discriminated against and even refused treatment by government medical service providers, activists are wondering whether the fight would have top be taken to the Supreme Court.

“What does one do when the entire establishment is in some sort of a conspiracy?”  asks Singh. “Refer to the High court judgement where the  BSACS project director  and principal secretary Health assured the court that the government  would supply  ART (anti-retrovral treatment) 365 days and they were to  ensure stocks of  two months’ advance supply to avoid shortages. The reality is that for the past one month the essential drugs in the ART regime are not being dispensed and the patients are frantic. The government ART centres run short of the drugs. The situation is such that there is a tacit understanding within the department that no correspondence should be generated on the matter so that there is no paper trail, in order to duck accountability and escape ‘action’ later.”

Singh, a member of Bihar Network of Positive people and attached to CHMU (Community Health Medicinal Unit) alleges that  BSACS functionaries are refusing to register more HIV positive persons for ART, in order to avoid ‘complications’. The logic being ‘There’s no stock, if we register them, from where will we get the medicines?’ These unfortunates are running from pillar to post.  

Functionaries at the government ART centres hand out  ‘prescriptions’  on scraps of paper and the patients are  told to buy the drugs elsewhere. There is a provision that in the case of shortage, the patient may be directed to buy ART medicine from a private pharmacy, and the record is kept in the ART book, so that the registered patient be reimbursed. (These drugs are available at very high rates in the open market). BSACS had given an undertaking to this effect in the court. The ART functionaries in gross violation, merely give the patients a scrap of paper with the name of the drug written on it. Evidently, this scrap of paper is not valid for reimbursement.

The situation is such that, even those patients who were lucky to have their purchases recorded in the ART book previous months, have not been reimbursed. Daily wage earners with a hand to mouth existence can’t afford to cough up for medicine that costs in the range of a thousand rupees every time, says Singh.

Singh’s own commitment to the cause has been the loss of his infant son to AIDS related complications largely brought on due to the negligence, apathy and dysfunctional State Aids Control Society services.

“What’s to be done? Do we have to start another agitation? Do we once again knock at the doors of the Court?” This is a question that a coalition of NGOs may soon be taking up. Watch this space.

Author: Frank Krishner

Bringing the Deep back into Deepawali

The festival of lights is around the corner, and as has become the norm, the environmental clubs of city schools and colleges plan human chains and such, calling for less noise, less wastage, and less consumption.

Some folks are a bit fed up with all the activism and noise around Diwali  fireworks and  noise pollution. In fact, there may be a strong case for setting off a few rockets and roman candles, some believe.

 “Diwali brings with it the ‘kali poka’ those tiny green insects. The change in season witnesses a multiplication of insects because it is their breeding time. One method to control the insect population is to use sulphur gas. The  fire crackers during Diwali release sulphur gas, which helps in killing the insects around us. Yes, we actually control insect population by bursting crackers. But fireworks have become a vexed issue,what with all the negative publicity and links to child labour with the cracker industry,” asserts K. Srinivas, a social activist.

This week Taru Mitra, (the friends of trees), India’s largest student  environment group, called for going back to the traditional earthen lamps, and shunning the use of those fancy electric bulbs (mainly the cheap ones imported from China) that have become so popular and ubiquitous. ‘Bring the Deep back to Deepawali’ is the new slogan.

 Why this sudden insistence on going back to the ‘polluting’ soot-spouting old-fashioned diya?

“Aha,!” says Taru Mitra’s Jesuit founder and eco-spirituality guru Robert Athickal, “One electric bulb is twenty times more polluting and harmful to the earth than an earthen lamp. Look at the amount of precious electricity that we consume on illuminations. In Bihar, we use thermal power, and we do have a power supply famine. The diya is traditional. It is also earth friendly.”

Think of how the skilled potters are starving, a social thinker might say. Whatever money they could earn from the sale of humble earthen lamps has dwindled, thanks to the shrinking demand. Let’s buy a few more earthen diyas so that these humble folk can keep their home fires burning.

Latika Mishra from Jharkhand blogs, “Notwithstanding the spiritual reasons to celebrate the festival of lights, there is a scientific fact behind it.” She points out that the Diwali season is marked by the abundance of an insect called the 'tiny leaf-hopper' of the cycadilladae family.  This insect feeds on plant sap and can transmit plant infecting viruses and bacteria. They are of sporadic occurrence in the rice growing areas. They have piercing and sucking mouth parts and are serious threats to rice cultivation as they can transmit the virus to standing paddy. Nymphs and adults both have the capacity to damage the crop.

Rice has a close association with Hindu rituals. Sage Parashara has laid stress on essentiality of rice cultivation and in his treatise called 'Krishi Parashar' sings, "Rice is vitality, rice is vigour and rice is indeed the fulfilment of all ends of life. Gods, demons and human beings all subsist on rice."

Burning of earthen lamps is a way to protect the civilization from starvation, as rice is the principle crop in the subcontinent. The sages used the return of King Rama as a pretext to get people to light thousands of earthen lamps, thus successfully removing the insect from the environment, for insects are attracted to the fire and are killed. So, Diwali  is marked by the mass killing of insects- tiny leaf-hoppers and mosquitoes that are abundant during the season every year, and pose a threat to crop cultivation and human nutrition.

What a beautiful, non-toxic way to get rid of pests! Now pause for a moment, do those fancy electric fairy lights have any use other than looking pretty, and gorging on electricity? The humble earthen lamp provides a livelihood to the poor potters, protects us from biting insects, and even wards away famine. What’s your call?

Author: Frank Krishner

Celebrate diversity say Christian Communicators

A week ago, an event that took place in New Delhi has caused ripples within certain sections of the population in Patna. A rally at Jantar Mantar coincided with the release of a report that detailed some 600 cases of violence and hate-based anti-social activities against minority communities across India since May 18 this year. This rally, largely ignored by the print and electronic media, is an important conversation piece among the more aware sections of the Christian populace.

 Visiting the Bihar capital this week was Sunil Lucas, the National President of SIGNIS, the social communications wing of the Catholic Church, who mirrored the anxiety being felt by Christians when news about attacks on priests or pastors  are becoming commonplace. “It’s natural that a sense of insecurity will creep in unless the Prime Minister deals firmly with all those who are spreading misconceptions and hate, vitiating the unity and harmony of the country,” he said.

Patna will be the venue for the National Assembly of the Social Communications wing of the Catholic Church, where some 120 representatives of Christian and secular communications organizations and professionals will meet around the theme ‘Cultural Diversity’, to emphasis we India’s multi-lingual, multi-faith, and multi- cultural identity.

“Christians are a small minority in Bihar, but our commitment and contribution to the state in several fields, mainly education and health is significant. We stand for a united India. As Christian  audio-visual  communicators, it is our duty to show unity, brotherhood and peace between all communities in our productions, be they films or videos,” says local video film maker Victor Francis, who has directed one of Patna Doordarshan’s earliest Bhojpuri serials.

“Ahimsa is what Jesus taught, and so it is natural that our priests advocate non-violence and faith in the rule of law, but some vested interests now take our peaceful attitude as a weakness, and Christians become soft targets. Beat up the Christians in a church and they will not react, break up their church and they will forgive you, even burn their church leaders alive and instead of crying for revenge and instigating a riot, the widows will say, “I forgive them in the name of Jesus”. The point is that there comes a breaking point,” says Rajesh Tirkey, a Tribal Catholic youth  from Bodh Gaya, who was one of the several youngsters who actively supported Narendra Modi during the Lok Sabha election campaign. “Several of us voted for change, believing that India needed a strong leader. We didn’t think of caste, religion, or class. We pray that this trust is not broken.”

The meaning of secularism needs to be debated across all forums, says Sylvester, a second year student at St. Xavier's College. A secular government should not lean towards any faith-based organization be it Muslim, Hindu, Christian, Jain, or Buddhist. In the meanwhile, the community leaders are closely watching the shape the discourse takes as the political climate shifts and changes shape in Bihar.

Author: Frank Krishner

Teachers don't Count Cattle no more

Ask a government teacher what hinders the delivery of quality education, and pat comes the answer, “Non-teaching assignments ordered by the local District magistrate”. Having interacted with scores, if not hundreds of government primary school teachers across Bihar over the years, this is their number one excuse for not getting their jobs done: how can we teach when we are ordered out of our classrooms to count animals?

The one fundamental excuse that a teacher in a state- run school has for not teaching is census and poll-related duties, and it has been around for over four decades. They say that instead of teaching kids in the classrooms, they are forced to traverse all over the countryside counting buffaloes, chickens, people below the poverty line... in fact anything that the state government wants counted is on the teachers' slates.

Frank Krishner at a 'Primary School' in Bodh Gaya 2010

The Bihar government has finally applied its mind to the problem and come up with the concept of a creating pool of ‘statistical volunteers’. These ‘volunteers’ will be unemployed educated youth having a ‘mathematics and commerce background’ according to the Bihar minister for planning and development Narendra Narayan Yadav.

One suspects that the person behind this idea is Principal Secretary of the department Vijay Prakash, who is well aware that having teachers go out and count animals, trees, and humans when they should be in school has always been a very stupid idea. Vijay Prakash has a communication style  that is simple and straightforward. This plan is in line with the Supreme Court’s directive that government school teachers should not be sent around on non-teaching assignments.

The teaching fraternity and educationists have pointed out that there was any number of educated and unemployed youth hanging about the place who could be drafted to do statistical work on a part-time basis.

These volunteers will be known as Accredited Statistical Volunteers (ASV), and a panel will be created for every block. Bihar has a total of 534 blocks, 8,071 Panchayats, and about 46,000 villages. This exercise would create about 80,000 part time jobs for educated and unemployed youth who have the requisite skills. Shortlisted and successful candidates are to be given a proper training in data collection and compilation, and receive an identity card. Their work will be remuneration based. In other words, they will be paid whenever there is census and statistical work .

This is a welcome move. The government teachers will have one less excuse for not doing the job of teaching. However, whether this will make a discernible impact on teaching quality is doubtful. Quality teaching needs dedication, intellect, compassion, and the ability to communicate well with kids. That can’t be addressed by statistical volunteers, accredited or otherwise. 

Author: Frank Krishner

A hundred years, a hundred pledges

A hundred years, a hundred pledges

For three days, starting March 23rd, Bihar celebrated itself. The epicentre of the centenary celebrations, which transmitted the feel-good vibes to the public at large, was undoubtedly the historic Gandhi Maidan, the central park which is also known as the ‘lungs’ of the state capital.

For three consecutive days, hundreds of thousands visited the site of the Bihar Centenary Celebrations. It was here that the past glory, the present progress and the future goals were represented in the form of tableaus, exhibition stalls, activities and workshops, food stalls, competitions, and cultural displays. People from all walks of life dropped in at the Gandhi Maidan.

In the midst of all the excitement, visitors were attracted by a bold brass bell hanging outside a small pavilion painted in blue. A sign read: “100 years/100 pledges”. This space was for people to make a commitment to contribute to the ‘Beautiful Bihar’ dream.

“Everybody, especially the middle class, agrees that the image of Bihar has improved in the recent past. They say it’s because of the political vision of the Chief Minister and his government. But it’s also true that Bihar is still at the bottom of the development table. Just new tall buildings and shopping malls are no indicators of progress. It is the behaviour of the ordinary Bihari that’s a barometer for the state’s progress,” pointed out Shubraja Singh, the State Project Coordinator of Mahila Samakhya, Bihar. Singh, along with some 3,000 rural women from 17 districts held a convention in five pavilions, celebrating their own development story over the past two decades.

PARTICIPATION AND PROMISES

The blue pavilion, an initiative of the Education Department and supported by UNICEF aimed at ensuring the cooperation of the ordinary Bihari and her (his) participation in environment building for Brand Bihar. The stall “AAO Sapath Len” (Come let’s make a pledge) was for visitors to walk in to take oath for Bihari pride. A certificate photograph and pledge was issued to each individual. 

Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s first Prime Minister had said,” Citizenship consists in the service of the country.” It was Theodore Roosevelt, once President of America, who had said almost a centenary ago “The first requisite of a good citizen in this republic of ours is that he shall be able and willing to pull his own weight.”

The Bihar ‘100 Years/100 pledge pavilion put forward a simple proposition: Will you do your bit to make Bihar the best state in the country? If so, come and sign on the dotted line.

 A hundred pledges? “Well, let’s say they are a 100 suggestions, very simple and achievable things that a person can do. And you don’t have to do all of them. Just pick one thing to do or not to do and swear to abide by your promise,” a UNICEF facilitator at the stall.

Education is about human resource development. The quality of the human resources will impact programme delivery and effectiveness for any planned intervention.

Says Nalin Mishra, an officer with the Bihar Education Quality Mission, “It is necessary to nurture the resources. If people have a sense of pride and good behaviour, this will make a difference and increase the growth of the state. Bihar has glorious past. Youngsters should be aware of their past and contribute to the further growth of Bihar. Bihar Divas is to instil a sense of pride in belonging to Bihar.”

The eight millennium goals of which education, gender equity, health and sanitation are prominent have been simplified into very common behaviours that can be easily done by the ordinary citizen. By linking each of these behaviours directly with a promise for the betterment of the state, a sense of pride and kinship is evoked.

THE PROCESS

The process began with a pre-event brainstorming session, which led to the selection of the hundred pledges. These pledges were development indicators in fairly simple and easily understood words. A few examples: To encourage out of school kids to go to school; not to spit indiscriminately, to treat visitors to Bihar with respect, to conserve energy, to pay special attention to girls’ education, not to waste food and so on.

A visitor would fill out her (his) name on a ticket, choose an oath, and then go inside the tent. S(he) would then sit in front of a computer fitted with a camera. The operator would immediately affix her(his) photograph on a soft copy of the oath and after a minute, the visitor would receive a beautifully printed and certified copy of the oath.

Having made the pledge, the visitor would ring the brass bell outside the stall: a symbolic announcement of the commitment to God and State.

Anjani Kumar

Space for expression was provided outside the stall, and children were encouraged to write or draw their dreams and hopes for Bihar. People of all ages took part in this creative exercise. They wrote slogans, penned best wishes to Bihar, and expressed their hopes for a future filled with hope for children.

RESPONSE

In all 10,094 people took a pledge. 3,293 of these were women and girls.

Among those who took the pledge were the Bihar Education Minister Hon’ble P K Sahi, who selected pledge number 34- ‘I will never behave in a manner that will bring down the prestige of Bihar.’ Mr Anjani Kumar, the Principal Secretary (Education) signed his name to pledge number 100: ‘I will encourage girls to achieve higher education.’ Dr. Rajesh Bhushan, the State Project Director of the Bihar Education Project Council pledged to make others aware of the glorious history of Bihar. Unicef Chief Dr Yameen Mazumdar took an oath to protect the rights of children.

The most taken pledge was the first on the list, “Encourage out of school children to enrol in school”. 831 men (12 percent) and 672 (22 percent) women took this pledge. The next important issue for women, was girls’ education. 146 women pledged to give special attention to the education of girls. The males’ second focus was the planting of tress ( 248 men, 93 women), followed by giving respect to teachers (226 males, 122 females). Conservation of water was the third most important issue for females, but it ranked 6th for males. The fourth most important pledge for males was number 82: ‘Completing my work with honesty and sincerity’. Higher education of girls ranked 5th on the men’s priorities, but 9th on the women’s after giving aid to orphans, helping the hungry, protecting trees, and standing up against domestic violence. Domestic violence ranked 25th  on the male priority list.

Each visitor could take only one pledge, thus one had to select the most important issue. The exercise was significant because the data collected can be an indicator of the status of advocacy on various issues.

The exercise had a lasting impression away from the Gandhi Maidan as well.

The mother of a college going student looked at her pledge card and remarked, “So you pledge not to discriminate on the basis of gender, you should have taken a pledge number 66- I promise to use my mobile phone sparingly!” Her daughter replied, “Ma, this isn’t a new year’s resolution. It’s a pledge. It has my photograph and signature on it. I’m not going to make a pledge I can’t keep!”

Author: Frank Krishner

Dispatching Despatches

Last week, The Telegraph started a Bihar edition from Patna. I started reading The Telegraph from its inaugural issue some twenty years ago, when it stood up to challenge the staid Statesman, which was every Calcuttan’s breakfast read at the time. It is wonderful to see the familiar Broadsheet at my doorstep every morning, this time from Bihar.

And that triggered memories about my own days as the Gangtok Correspondent of The Telegraph, when I was in the Northeastern India in the mid eighties and early nineties. In those days, there was no internet, and so we newspaper correspondents had to depend on the old wire services provided by the Postal Department. We would write or type our stories out in longhand, and then toodle off to the nearest post and telegraph office to submit them at the counter for telegrams. In those days regular telegrams cost fifty paise a word, so the members of the Press had special ‘P&T’ cards that allowed us to send telegrams to our newspapers on credit. The special ‘newspaper rate’ was four paise per word.

We would have to write our stories in duplicate, and keep a carbon copy. When we arrived at the post office, we would have to submit both the copies at the counter. The despatch ( a very official sounding word, I loved it) would be recorded, and the carbon copy stamped and handed back to you. The chap receiving the telegrams wouldn’t be wearing a smiley face. He’d stare glumly at the paper and say something like , “Seven hundred words! I’ve got to type seven hundred words, and that UNI fellow has handed in a report six hundred words long!” How quickly the telegram would reach Calcutta from Gangtok would depend entirely upon how enthusiastic and skilful the telegraph operator was, and we pressmen had to keep the fellow in good humour if we wanted our despatches to be ‘first off the block’.
In 1989, the fax machine made its appearance, and what a wonder it was. The first time I saw a fax machine was in the office of the UNI Bureau Chief in Shillong. He really showed it off. In fact, he invited all of us 'hick journalists' in Shillong to his place to ogle at it over a couple of swigs of cheap rum!

I dug up a couple of my old ‘Telegram cards’: the yellow one is the one for The Telegraph, and the other one is the telegram card for The Times of India, which I wrote stories for while in Shillong. As I turned them over in my hand, I heard a song play inside my head.. “Those were the days, my friend, we thought they’d never end, we’d sing and dance forever and a day….”

Author: Frank Krishner

Abhivyakti: Subaltern Voices

As usual, the 9th Ravi Bharati Bihar Low Cost Film Festival featured a few films that provoked responses. One of these films was Debaranjan Sarangi's  'From Hindu to Hindutva'. This film revisited the scenes of the worst ever anti-Christian riots in Orissa and presented the various voices and viewpoints around the Khandamahal carnage. The film was mis-named.

Several people visited the festival with the sole purpose of seeing the film, and one of them was Mr Patrick John, a fairly well known commentator in the Patna Church media. He expressed his appreciation of the film and said that  it showed how religion is being use as an excuse to wipe out the minorities. He called for the Christians to find ways to heal the wounds. A pious thought, no doubt.

Rajinder Dash a former administrator who has handled some of the worst communal conflicts in Bihar during his time, mentioned that the film clearly stated the complexity of the problem: the clash between the militant missionaries on both sides of the divide: Hindu versus Christian; the other issue of it being a Dalit versus Adivasi conflict over land and resources, a third angle being the adivasi communities pitted against the mining companies, and a fourth angel being the political angle: administration, its political alliances with the mining lobby. The root of the clashes were mainly economic, he pointed out. Rajinder Dash, being an Oriya and familiar with the langage of the film and the area, said that the area was so remote that it was no surprise that the adinistration took a couple of days to repond to the violence.

If  Debranjan Sarangi's film [screened on the first day] presented the complexity of religious hatred and manipulation in the name of religion to commit murder and genocide, Arzoo, directed by Shashi Ghosh Gupta [screened on the last day] was the story of a young Muslim girl who rose above the hatred and trauma caused by the Gujarat genocide, and did something beautiful for children. the film was rated the most outstanding of the evening. Arzoo, agreed many participants, was the answer to all the Kandamahals and Gujarats. The courage of conviction of the protagonist of Arzoo shone through the film. Young people took an instant liking to the film. One participant said that the film should be shown in all the colleges of Bihar.

Morality TV or Living a Jehad – Ek manohar Kahani by Paromita Vohra sparked off a lot of reactions - outrage, disgust, incredulity, and wide eyed amazement at the blatant way in which human rights are violated in small town India, how news is manipulated and how myth and lies masquerades as news, the way the small town media of Indore panders to the Hindutva Brigade, and how the police and society targets women. Even women policemen are hand in glove with this regressive repression. Someone said.. "Just look at that sickening display of corruption and coercion... nothing like that would happen in Bihar....and yet they give Bihar a bad name!

The beauty and pace of Do Din ka Mela by Anjali Monteiro and KP Jayashankar took many viewer's breath away, and discussions ranged around the beauty of the shots, and certain sequences, the subtle humour, the nuanced editing.

Student films also sparked off debates and appreciation. BRIDGE THE GAP by Sharanya Gautam & Shilpi Gautam was appreciated for its very interesting use of symbols to argue for holistic primary education. Inside Out by Divya Cowasji and Shilpi Gulati sparked off a considerable discussion about a woman's right to space, a woman's right to her body, how the burkha has been portrayed as  a symbol of liberation, as a means for a girl to access spaces within the city, how the burkha isn't really a symbol of freedom, as a woman she should be able to claim the spaces without hiding behind the burkha and so on.

The films from Bihar were noticed for their portrayal of themes that many of the residents of Patna were not aware of - the beauty of Bhagalpuri silk, the forgotten wedding and birth songs from Mithilanchal, and so on.

Author: Frank Krishner

Bihar's RTE Dilemma

Background

The Right to Education Act, 2009 is a path-breaking piece of legislation that has widespread ramifications on the primary education delivery system. This Act will come into force on the first day of April, 2010. The Act calls for a substantial reworking and remodelling of the institutions and procedures at State level, as well as for the framing of rules under the Act that will ensure Primary Education coverage for every child in the state.

Objective

In order to effectively formulate the State Rules under the Act, a series of consultations have been organised by the Bihar Education Project Council with national experts, state implementation partners and decision makers and stakeholders.

The first consultation was held at State level on 18th and 19th February 2010 at Hotel Patliputra Ashok, Patna.



Mr Anjani Kumar Singh, IAS, Principal Secretary, Department of Human Resource Development introduced the aims and objectives of the Consultation.

Addressing the stakeholders present, he pointed out that the Act was an ambitious one, specifically in the context of Bihar. He stated that in the past decade and a half, the kind of development expected on the elementary education front didn’t happen due to multifarious reasons.

“We can see that, in respect to other states, our state was quite backward in student-teacher ratio, school rooms, quality, teacher training, and facilities for disabled children. In the past three to four years, we have taken some measures which have resulted in the improvement of the situation to a small extent, but the ideal platform for us to launch such an ambitious Act does not exist at present,” he said.

The RTE Act had already been passed and was expected to come into force on the first of April. Bihar would have to do a lot, and do a lot of new things to implement the provisions of the Act.

The Principal Secretary HRD urged the participants to examine the ramifications of the Act carefully and try to come up with solutions. He highlighted some of the challenges.

Parameters have changed a lot. For example it was quite difficult to bring the teacher-student ratio to 40:1. In the recent past, the government had appointed more than two lakh teachers, but even more teachers need to be appointed to attain that standard. If, in conformity with the Act, the ratio is made to 30:1, the question would be from where would three lakh teachers come? The Act calls for trained teachers, where would these teachers come from, he asked.

[The Act stipulates that EVERY child betweeen 6 and 14 MUST access school Compulsorily, and the STATE shall ensure this as the Act comes into force April 2010 ]

There are different categories of teachers at present, but under the Act all teachers would have to be trained and meet a nationally determined standard.

Stressing on the fact that the law had been passed and that there was no room to debate the provisions of the Act, he said that the Model Rules were a guideline along which individual states would frame the rules taking into consideration the local conditions, possibilities, and constraints.

He drew attention to the existence of implementation time frames within the Act, and asked the participants to deliberate on the ways and strategies that could be used to handle these time frames.

The Act calls for all schools to be registered with the Government, and the good thing about this would be that a minimum standard would have to be maintained in all schools. If these minimum standards were not maintained, then the schools would have their registration cancelled. He pointed out that there was a danger of harassment for private schools and complications in this context, and stresses the importance of evolving a system whereby implementation would be smooth and transparent.

It would be necessary to prioritise the areas of implementation, taking into consideration the priorities in the State. A workable time frame for the implementation of each aspect would have to be worked out.

One of the major challenges would be the fiscal aspect. Financial resources and allocation for different components would present a challenge.

He pointed out that currently education spending was about 15 percent over the budget allocation. The implementation of the new Act would weigh heavily on the state exchequer, and the challenge would be mobilising resources to meet the projected expenditure of approximately Rs 28,000 crore. He mentioned that even the developed states were finding it difficult to muster the resources required to implement the RTE act, and that it was generally felt that the Centre should contribute towards 90 percent of the resources required for implementation.

Mr Anjani Kumar urged the participants to come up with an implementable road map taking into consideration the ground realities of the State. He said that even though the issues thrown up by the RTE looked huge, it was not a time to be disheartened.

He said that the participants present represented a wide range: NGOs and pressure groups for educational reform, private schools, and stakeholders and it was his belief that the two day consultation would throw up useful recommendations that would help in a viable and priority based implementation road-map for Bihar.


Author: Frank Krishner
Frank Krishner documents several educational initiatives for UNICEF, the State Government agencies, and other International Organisations. This post and subsequent ones on the consultation are for the purpose of general awareness and for the response of the enlightened public.

Video in the ELT classroom

I have been using video technologies in the classroom since the late 1980’s. From videotapes to DVDs and streaming video from the Internet, the visual mode is still the most powerful and popular medium of communication. Far from being mere entertainment, carefully chosen films are, in fact, useful and highly motivational teaching tools for practicing listening skills and stimulating speaking and writing.
Though video technology became affordable in the late 1970s, video became an even more widely available teaching aid in the next twenty years or so. Today, although the CBSE[1] recommends the use of selected films in the classroom, its penetration into everyday classroom practice and course/syllabus design hasn't been deep. In fact, the video is still an outsider in over 90 percent of Bihar’s ‘English Medium’ classrooms. It’s a shame that even in University classrooms, the number one teaching aid at an ELT teacher’s disposal is usually a stick of chalk.

How can teachers use video in the classroom? Most often it is used either to present students with spoken language input for listening practice or to elicit student language output via speaking or writing. Videos may also illustrate cultural and nonverbal behaviour and can also be used for teaching a variety of content (e.g., “about” linguistics) and skills (e.g., media literacy, literary criticism, comparing book and film versions). [2]
Looking back at the early days, it may be recalled that the first pedagogical practice was the direct adaptation of existing methodologies to incorporate the new technology. The 1960s and 70s had seen the emergence of the functional/notional approach to describing and teaching language, and this had begun to substitute transformational grammar as the main underlying principle behind materials and course design. One example is the appositely titled "Video English", a series of videos which took the main functions of the English language (e.g. greetings and introductions, asking for and giving information, etc.), and developed short sketches around them. The videos were accompanied by useful teaching notes, classroom activities, transcripts, suggestions for teachers and additional language material.

I use videos in several ways in my language classes. Actually, there are broadly three kinds of videos that I use. The first category is gleaned from BBC English language teaching resources. These are specially designed teaching videos that are developed around a teaching point and come with a downloadable script that can be very useful for teacher and student alike. The second category is popular films and episodes from television series.
The third category – which the teacher in India can acquire with a little bit of resourcefulness – is the adaptation of authentic TV and video material for language teaching. Two examples are the BBC's "Television English" series, in which excerpts from (mainly non-dramatic) UK broadcast TV programs are the focal point for well-written language learning activities, and Sony Corporation’s teaching materials based on a limited number of major feature films.
In addition to these three main categories of video resources, there is content or theme specific course material such as “Business English" and "Tourist English" videos, as well as courses using cartoons, aimed at children.

How does one use video in the classroom? Like other ELT practitioners, I have developed my own techniques. These techniques are far from new. One such technique is silent viewing. The students view a sequence, for example of a couple ordering a meal in a restaurant, and then attempt to generate an appropriate dialogue for the scene. The actual dialogue can then be used as a model from which to adapt the students' efforts. Alternatively, if the students are already familiar with the dialogue, they can use the silent re-viewing to reproduce the conversation. The reverse technique is to play the sound only, and have students discuss what the scene might look like. The teacher may also make good use of the ‘pause’ or ‘freeze-frame’ option, to check comprehension and to answer unanticipated questions. In some viewings, students should be encouraged to indicate if they want a pause in the viewing to pick up on points of confusion or general interest.
There are a number of features found in real spoken language but not in typical teaching materials. Real people mumble and talk with food in their mouths; some speak rather rapidly and use nonstandard forms; they incorporate different levels of formality and colloquialisms; they talk in incomplete sentences and use all sorts of pause fillers, hesitation phenomena, and the like. Differences in speech may be found from those of different regions, ethnic groups, social classes, ages, even gender. Speech is full of variety and ambiguity and students need to develop some ability to deal with this, even if it’s just to learn how to ask for clarification when they don’t understand something. Using video examples, teachers can guide students do deal with language as it is really used.[3]

Normally, however, merely watching and listening is not enough in the classroom. Teachers have to structure activities around the video. We may have the students summarize the plots of movies or entertaining TV shows; they may be encouraged to describe specific scenes or characters in detail. For news or information programmes, students may be encouraged to locate specific information by looking for the answers to WH-questions such as What happened? To whom? Where? With some other stories , they may be interested in discovering he answers to: What is the problem? What are the effects? What caused it? Are any solutions suggested?
The abovementioned activities incorporate listening and understanding, as well as writing down key information, and talking about the video with others. The activities might take the form of comprehension questions (multiple choice, ticking off, or completion), note-taking, and discussion. The students may also be asked to fill in blanks in the transcript while listening or to focus on certain lexical and grammatical usage. This, of course means that the teacher has to do his (her) homework well, planning out the activities and developing the task sheets that are to be used in the class.

On a more practical level, where the classroom is fitted with a television and cable connection, such as the one we have at the Department of Communicative English with Media Studies in Patna Women’s College, it is possible to let the students have access to English news programmes aired on satellite channels such as NDTV 24x7, Times Now or CNN-IBN. The English news on Doordarshan can be a fairly useful tool to help beginners with weak vocabularies and limited exposure to the spoken word familiarise themselves with registers.
The television programmes that I have found most useful are those that relate directly to the students’ worldview. The popular chat show ‘Koffee with Karan’ , NDTV’s talk show ‘We the people’, and the quiz show ‘Are you smarter than a fifth grader?’ can be potent language teaching tools.

One of the great advantages of video is that it provides authentic language input. Movies and TV programs are made for native speakers, so in that sense video provides authentic linguistic input. Students in Bihar are usually taught to memorize some grammar rules and vocabulary; the actual ability to use the language may or may not follow. When faced with a real native speaker, they panic. The unfortunate situation prevalent today, especially in the ELT ‘teaching shops’ is that ELT teachers in are not native speakers of English, and in this context, the judiciously used film/TV show can be used as a substitute for the ‘authentic’ native speaker.

[1] Central Board of Secondary Education
[2] Katchen, J. E. (1996). Using authentic video in English language teaching: Tips for Taiwan’s teachers. Taipei: Crane.

[3] ibid


Author: Frank Krishner
Frank Krishner is a journalist, film-maker and documentation specialist who has authored the weekly column “Wordsmith” on English usage in the Education Times (Times of India). He has been teaching mass communication at Patna Women’s College for the past decade.

Glory Days: Patna as education hub?

The early 1900’s brought students from other states and neighbouring countries to Patna for education, will the 21st century see the resurgence of Patna as a destination or quality education? The jury’s out on that one, writes Frank Krishner

Every June, outbound trains and planes carry significant numbers of freshly graduated high school students towards colleges in other cities: Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, and even to towns such as Indore and Gangtok. These youngsters leave home and wing their way to mainstream and vocational courses, battling it out in competitive examinations, braving inhospitality and swallowing their pride because they believe that colleges, institutions and universities outside the state will give them a better deal.

Observers say that times are changing and that this tide may soon be stemmed. They point to the many ‘franchisee’ schools: the ‘big brands’ of private education that have set up shop in the State capital. Vocational courses that lead to better paying pay-packets are no longer exclusively available in the Metros. Bihar can boast of several players of national and international repute that promise world-class education right in the heart of Patna. Be it media studies, animation, radio and television, foreign language courses, business management or fashion designing, there are institutes that offer these courses right here.

TRYST
“Patna’s tryst with modern education started way back in the 19th century. Schools like St. Joseph’s Convent and St. Michael’s have traditions that span over 150 years,” says Anne D’Costa, who taught at the latter school for over 25 years and who now lives with her equally famous footballer and teacher husband Rocque D’Costa in Mumbai.

Patna College dates back to 1912. Patna Medical College and Bihar National College gave India and the world some of its brightest luminaries. The American Jesuits started St. Xavier’s, and the American Bishop Sullivan started Patna Women’s College in the tempestuous years of 1939-40. They read the signs of India struggling to break free from British colonialism and encouraged their students to prepare themselves to take on great responsibilities in the New India. Students travelled from Bengal, Orissa and neighbouring countries to schools and colleges in Patna.

PASS WITHOUT ENGLISHIn the seventies and eighties, Patna saw several upheavals, not the least in the field of education. There emerged a new category on the Matriculation certificate, “Pass without English”. The venerable Catholic / Protestant aristocratic English medium school ethos: stolid and elitist, underwent a drastic change as the Jesuits shifted gears and opened the floodgates to Dalits in their new-found ‘option for the poor’. Upper class Patna watched aghast as trusted traditions were thrown to the winds and first St. Xavier’s, and then St. Michael’s reversed gears and became Hindi medium schools. This resulted in the opening of several privately run English Medium Schools run by Anglo-Indians, the most famous of which was set up by a certain Alfred De Rozario.

ASPIRATIONAL LANGUAGE

“Let’s face it. English is the aspirational language of Bihar. In spite of all attempts to portray Bihar as a rustic place which has no place for English, several private English Medium schools opened in Patna,” observes journalist and educator Allen Johannes. “Schools such as Rose Bud, St. Karen’s, St. Dominic Savio’s were started and flourished. Soon other schools such as DAV and Krishna Niketan opened: all of them teaching with English as a medium of instruction.”

Post-modern, technology-driven, globalised India has an entirely different set of aspirations and values, and the shift is evident in the choices made by the prospering middle classes of twenty-first century Bihar. The air-conditioned designer schools have made a mark in Patna. If money is no consideration, one needn’t pack their kids off to strange boarding schools when brands such as DPS, Radiant, and Zee have arrived and unpacked their wares.

Gyan Niketan School Director Anita Kunal attributes the success of the institution to the dedication and devotion of faculty and students to their respective duties. “Team work, utmost sincerity and honesty towards been our USP. We just don’t rest on our laurels and allow complacency to sneak in. We are constantly challenging ourselves to set new but realistic standards,” she says. She denounces too much attention being given to academics alone. “The general tendency is to stress too much on academics once the students reach the 10+2 level. The extra curricular activities and personality development aspect of education which are an integral part of the process are given a backseat. This should be avoided. The idea is to attain equilibrium between studies and all round development, without which education loses its essence.”

Coomar Anunodaya, who runs the Krishna Niketan chain of schools says that the imparting of cultural values and sanskar are the basis of education. “In our schools, we do not stress only on grades, life skills are an integral part of education. The girls are taught how to be good daughters, mothers and daughters-in-law as well. Family values are important.” A similar line of thought is also held by the Premalok school, which has sessions with spiritual leaders as part of the curriculum.

There primary reason why the demand for higher education and traditional courses in the state suffer and students migrate to outside institutions is that little placement assistance is provided by Patna colleges, says College of Commerce (Magadh University) Principal Suresh Prasad. “This deters them from opting for courses from Patna institutions which don’t provide them with access to employment opportunities.”

There is evidence that the benefits of education to individuals and society are enhanced when its quality is high. For example, better learning outcomes – as represented by pupils’ achievement test scores – are closely related to higher earnings in the labour market; thus, differences in quality are likely to indicate differences in individual worker productivity. Empirical research has also demonstrated that good schooling improves national economic potential. The quality of the labour force, again as measured by test scores, appears to be an important determinant of economic growth.
[Photo by FK: Boys in a government shool in Madhepura, Bihar March 2009. This article was published in the Times of India in April 2008]

Author: Frank Krishner