Page 46 - EducationWorld Aug 2020 Flipbuilder

Cover Story

to remain not-for-profit and subject to
supervision by School Management
Committees (SMCs) established un-
der s.21 of the RTE Act, 2009. Com-
mendably, NEP 2020 has diluted the
committee’s prejudice against private
schools by explicitly stating that they
are to be “assessed, and accredited on
the same criteria, benchmarks and
processes” as public/government
schools subject to full online and of-
fline transparency.
M OREOVER, NEP 2020

makes an unprecedent-
ed distinction between
“public spirited private
schools” and others. The former are to Sharma: huge arrears Gurcharan Das: fund, not run
be “encouraged and not stifled in any
way” (para 8.7). The recommenda- be borne by state governments obliged schools. Indeed NEP 2020 repeatedly
tion of the KR Committee that private iniquitously, to pay private schools commends “private philanthropic ef-
schools should be subject to supervi- the equivalent of per-child expendi- forts for quality education” and reiter-
sion by SMCs which would have trans- ture incurred by them in government ates that all private schools and HEIs
lated into supervision by amateur schools. According to Kulbhushan must compulsorily be “not-for-profit
parents and local politicians — has Sharma, president of the Delhi- entities”.
to the great relief of private school based NISA (National Independent The insistence of NEP 2020 that all
managements — been dropped. The Schools Alliance) which has a mem- private schools and private HEIs have
fine print of NEP 2020 also suggests bership of 60,000 mainly low-priced to subscribe to the elaborate fiction
that the new policy is not opposed to budget private schools (BPS), state that they are being run as charitable,
greenfield schools levying high tuition governments owe arrears of “lakhs of not-for-profit institutions — when
and other fees commensurate with crores” to budget private schools un- the grassroots reality is that unless
promoters’ investment in infrastruc- der this account. the country’s 375,000 independent
ture and highly qualified teachers, NEP 2020 is also silent about leg- schools and 400,000 BPS record prof-
but only against “arbitrary increases” islation enacted by most state govern- its, they would have to shut down —
of annual fees to protect parents and ments capping fees levied by private exasperates informed monitors of In-
communities. schools at unrealistically low levels, dia’s confusing education ecosystem.
On the issue of state governments and about s.19 of the RTE Act which “Education is a public good like
regulating and adjudicating school tu- stipulates impossible infrastructure roads or public buses. The govern-
ition and other fees — the biggest pain norms for private schools. This pro- ment doesn’t have to build roads or
point of private school managements vision was deliberately inserted into run buses. Similarly, it should fund
who argue that holistic first world edu- the RTE Act to drive the country’s schools, not run them. Instead of
cation vociferously demanded by par- estimated 400,000 budget private cheap talk against profit and eulogis-
ents and students cannot be provided schools (BPS), which are attracting ing philanthropy, NEP 2020 should
at third world prices — NEP 2020 government school students by thou- have shed hypocrisy and been more
is conspicuously silent. Ditto about sands per day, out of business. honest. 85 percent of India’s private
“partial backdoor nationalisation” of With education being a concurrent schools survive only if they make a
private schools effected through s.12 subject under the Constitution sub- profit. If nine out of the world’s top ten
(1) (c) of the RTE Act which obliges ject to Central and state jurisdiction, economies allow for-profit schools,
private day schools to reserve 25 per- state government legislation capping why can’t India? This single change
cent capacity in elementary classes (I- private school fees, imposing their will bring huge investments into edu-
VIII) for poor children — as certified regional languages etc is unlikely to cation, improve quality and choice.
by state and local governments — in be rescinded. Neither is the Central Principals wouldn’t have to lie or be
their neighbourhood. government likely to alter or amend called thieves. Black money would be
The cost of educating poor children s.12 (1) (c) and s.19 of the RTE Act curbed,” says well-known public intel-
thus admitted by private schools is to or allow the promotion of for-profit lectual, newspaper columnist and au-

46 EDUCATIONWORLD AUGUST 2020