Education should inculcate values to our Children who should be humble, understanding the pains of others, develop mutual respect for others which are however absent in our present system of education. Teachers have been traditionally held in high esteem in our society. In ancient system of  Gurukul, a self less teacher was teaching and imparting skills to his pupil for nothing in return beyond a meager gurudakshina which the society willingly provided. Students were also taught self less service by helping the Guru and Gurupatni in their household chores and Guru also did not distinguish between his students. That is how a King Lord Krishna and a poor Brahmin sudhama could learn together and Dronacharya and Druapada could be class mates. This is beyond the point.

I remember an allegorical story highlighting the need to be simple and humble. After having been acknowledged as a Brahma rishi by no less than Vashist, Viswamitra could not comprehend as to why people rever Vashist more than him. Lord Krishna ordained both of them to feed 10 people whom they consider inferior to them before sunset. Viswamitra could find all of his disciples and fed them in no time. Vashist was struggling to find a single individual whom he considered inferior to him ultimately fed his wife Arundati upon her request. This humility said Lord Krishna differentiates them.

I have a high respect for former IIT Director Prof. Indirasen who has contributed to the field of education. His recent article in Business line calling RTE is an half baked idea however has unmasked his prejudices. Even earlier when Arjun Singh extended Mandal quota in IIT, IIM and institutes of higher learning, Indira Sen was one among those intellectuals who feared dilution of quality. But how long are we to make education, that too quality education in accessible to majority of our country men because they belong to underprivileged sections and economically poor?  One could understand the advocacy for special coaching classes for those who get enrolled for the first time in such institutes of higher learning. This also applies to Private unaided schools who claim to have excellent faculty and environment much better than state run schools. Prof Indirasen laments that the reimbursement of school fees by the State based on what it costs to educate a child in Government schools will  be not sufficient to cover the costs. He argues who will pay for extra and co curricular activities that the private schools provide. Well none of our athletes who have excelled in various sports such as archery, wrestling, Sprint, swimming are from private schools even though Private residential schools train their pupil in all such extra curricular activities.

It is true that the higher echelons of society may end up paying a little more as tuition fees in order to make private schools viable but that is a small price to pay to ensure equality of education.A Society which spends enormous sums of money on every conceivable material needs can also afford to pay subsidy to educate our Children.

It is keeping with Indian Tradition of opposing any reformist measure that will question the status quo.Has it occurred to anyone as to why poverty, ill health, malnourishment of our children has touched the chords of millionaires like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Fords while our own millionaires are busy buying cricket teams, floating multi storyed buildings and venture capital funds to help start up IT companies?

We have too much of moral, allegorical texts and yet we are morally bankrupt.