The massacre of government schools
Government schools are in news again. The only time when government schools feature in news is when they are due to be closed. Reports in the media say more than 3000 schools have been closed and more would down the shutters soon. Primary and Higher primary education minister N Mahesh has said they’d ensure the government schools are not closed for whatever reasons. Governments in the past gave similar assurances but then they could hardly stick to their promise.
Governments assure that the schools won’t be closed. But the unsaid meaning in this is ‘if they close, remember we weren’t responsible’. If the attendance of children consistently drops in a government school, they’d obviously be rendered useless and shut down sooner or later. Our politicians know this well. None of the schools in our state closed by themselves. There is an organized conspiracy behind this. If you starve a person to death, doesn’t that amount to murder? Similar is the situation with schools.
The basic infrastructure of the school is consistently destroyed, and no new measures are initiated to ensure they begin to work well. When they do not respond to the needs of modern times, schools will obviously go into the oblivion. And this act is carried out by the governments. All parents send their kids to school with the hope that they’d be well prepared to earn a livelihood for themselves in the future and be ready to face challenges too.
Hence, they choose the schools with much care. If they feel government schools are not meeting the needs of their children’s future, they’d obviously take their children to other schools.
There must be some significant reason behind making private schools inevitable for parents, by way of weakening the government schools despite supply of books, mid day meals, free uniform and books etc.
Government is probably playing a role in this closure too. While some schools are being shut down, some of them are being adopted by wealthy corporates who have set their eyes on the most valuable land on which the schools stand. But then, some organisations, social servants and volunteers are really doing a good job of running defunct government schools better than the government itself.
At the same time, some vested interests are planning to materialize their plans on this occasion when the schools are being rendered useless. This ‘adoption scheme’ is being used really well by some organisations. Today, some schools are much like children who are not wanted by either of the parents. And in private space, parents are struggling to meet the expenses of kids getting into nursery and primary, forget even higher classes. If the schools shut down, children coming under BPL category will have a tough time accessing education. Even the middle class will have to fall prey to costly education. Kannada, the language, will hardly have any chances of survival. In the future, there’d be clear demarcation between the ones that can afford education and the ones that cannot. This would increase the difference between the haves and have nots.
Even if the government worries one little bit about the people in bottom most rung of the society, it should not allow closure of government schools ever.
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'Engineered narratives': West Bengal guv on alleged molestation charges against him
Kolkata, May 2: West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose on Thursday said he will not be cowed down by “engineered narratives” and the "truth shall triumph” after TMC leaders claimed that a woman working at Raj Bhavan levelled allegations of molestation against him.
In a statement, the Governor said, “Truth shall triumph. I refuse to be cowed down by engineered narratives. If anybody wants some election benefits by maligning me, God bless them. But they cannot stop my fight against corruption and violence in Bengal,”
To the Raj Bhavan staff "who expressed solidarity with him following some derogatory narratives that were circulated by two disgruntled employees as agents of political parties," a communication by Raj Bhawan said.
The Governor’s statement came after senior TMC leaders claimed this evening in a series of social media posts that the woman, who had levelled the allegations, has been taken to a police station to complain against Bose.
Though police sources said they received a verbal complaint, there was no official word on whether a formal complaint had been registered.
“BIG. Bengal governor CV Ananda Bose was accused of molesting a woman. How utterly appalling and Horrifying. Ahead of @narendramodi visit to Kolkata who is supposed to stay overnight at Raj Bhavan, a woman has alleged that she was molested while she went to meet the Governor at Raj Bhavan today. The complainant has been taken to the Hare Street police station for filing a complaint. The woman has accused the Governor of molesting her. Shocking and disgraceful,” TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghose said in a post on X.
Fellow TMC MP Saket Gokhale also posted on his X account regarding the issue.
West Bengal Women and Child Development Minister Shashi Panja said it is “shameful” that the Governor has maligned his post and has used it to “torture a woman”.
“It is appalling and shocking to see such an incident. This is the same Governor who had reached out to Sandeshkhali to talk about women’s rights and Nari Shakti. This is shameful that the Governor sought undue advantages in the pretext of giving her a permanent job. We want Prime Minister Narendra Modi who will be addressing rallies in Bengal tomorrow to react on this issue,” she said.
According to sources in the Governor's House, the "woman employee with the help of her alleged boyfriend who is also an employee of the Raj Bhavan was blocking complaints (from people) being sent to the Election Commission of India.
"When she was reprimanded for that, she went outside and alleged molestation. She is in the habit of throwing tantrums against her colleagues because of some disease," a Raj Bhavan official said.
The West Bengal Governor and the TMC government have shared an acrimonious relationship since he assumed office in November 2022 and had several run-ins on various issues.
The BJP said it has to be seen whether this a “conspiracy by the TMC” or has an “iota of truth in it”.
“We all know that the TMC is politically cornered on the issue of SSC scam and is looking for a breathing space. So this needs to be seen whether this is a conspiracy by the TMC or it has any iota of truth in it,” BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari said.
BIG. Bengal governor CV Ananda Bose accused of molesting a woman. How utterly APPALLING and HORRIFYING. Ahead of @narendramodi visit to Kolkata who is supposed to stay overnight at Raj Bhavan, a woman has alleged that she was molested while she went to meet the Governor at Raj…
— Sagarika Ghose (@sagarikaghose) May 2, 2024
Shameful that a constitutional office holder should try to prejudice an impartial investigation by attacking the motive of the complainant. We have seen this happen in that infamous Saturday Hearing of the Supreme Court. Respect women! https://t.co/E6eJLQvFXO
— sanjoy ghose (@advsanjoy) May 2, 2024
