TS minority residential schools win plaudits

Hyderabad: India Education Conclave, which was held from June 13 to 16 in the city under the aegis of MESCO and All India Educational Movement, concluded with adoption of several resolutions.

The conclave appreciated the successful scheme of minority residential schools in rented buildings pioneered by the Government of Telangana under TMREIS. The participants felt that similar schemes should be adopted by different state governments of North India, where educationally backward minorities glaringly need affirmative action for the educational development.

The conclave felt that Muslim educational institutions and educationalists must take note of the fast-changing scenario of quality education and accordingly strive to enhance quality of education as much as possible. There is an urgent need for increasing South to North Cooperation among Muslim educational institutions, so that the educational lag of Muslims in some Northern states could be done away with through the qualitative experiences and resources of the south.

The participants also noted an urgent need on the part of Muslim civil society organizations to deeply discuss the Draft National Education Policy and send suitable suggestions within the given time for its effectiveness in uplifting of marginalized sections. The conclave emphasized the significance of both character and competence as a hallmark of human development, and suggested that all stakeholders to suitably consider them in their educational aspirations.

The conclave noted that Muslim women's educational attainment during the past years has significantly improved. However, there is much to be desired in this regard to alleviate their overall condition. There is an increasing trend of suicides in campuses due to both academic and ethnic reasons and suitable measures are required for curbing the menace.

As the policy of privatization is depriving many talented students of educationally backward minorities, the government should take up suitable schemes, so that their developmental opportunities may not be affected due to the concerning policies, the participants said. The existing scholarship schemes for minorities should be designed to make them at par with those of SCs/STs, the resolution said.