After Public Health, Chinks in Education Sector Come to Fore

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Thiruvananthapuram: After the much-hyped public health system of Kerala exposed its weaknesses, chinks in the state’s education sector have come to the fore, mostly resulting from over-politicisation and administrative ineptitude.

A strong and reliable public health system and a sustainable, inclusive education sector have long been touted as the twin pillars of the widely-acclaimed Kerala Model of Development, flaunting high human development indices. The state has made sterling achievements in the health and education domains on the strength of farsighted policy initiatives and investments over the decades, reinforced by transformative socio-political interventions.

The poor state of government hospitals, including Medical College Hospitals (MCHs), came to light recently, serving as wake-up calls. These included the collapse of a portion of a building in Kottayam MCH leading to the death of a woman, and a candid social media post by a senior doctor of MCH in the state capital, stating that his department was forced to delay surgeries for want of equipment.

Amid the turbulence spurred by the poor state of the public health system, the LDF government has come under severe criticism for its mishandling of the state entrance examination to professional courses, known as KEAM.

Also Read: Kerala’s storied public health system comes under strain

The results of the engineering stream entrance examination were published a few days ago. Local media prominently featured the toppers, but the young students’ elation soon turned into bitter disappointment. The rank list was overturned after the Kerala High Court, acting on a petition, found serious fault with it.

It was found that the rank list was prepared based on a new ‘normalisation process,’ implemented to ensure a level playing field for candidates from the state syllabus, who are said to be facing disadvantages compared to those from the CBSE and ICSE syllabi. This was based on recommendations by an expert panel set up by the government. However, it turned out that the change in the system was not made clear in the prospectus issued before the conduct of the examination.

As the court stood by its ground, rejecting the appeal filed by the government, the Commissioner of Entrance Examination had to bring out a revised rank list, which saw some of the initial toppers slipping down the rung.

Higher Education Minister R. Bindu is at the centre of the raging controversy, with critics alleging that her department had handled such a serious issue with little concern for the future of the young aspirants.

While all this was happening, Kerala University, the premier higher education institution of the state, continues to be in administrative paralysis. A hotbed of partisan politics, the turbulence at the university took a worse turn after its vice-chancellor-in-charge placed the university registrar under suspension.

The action against the registrar followed his issuing of a notice for the cancellation of a programme at the University Senate Hall, which was being attended by Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar. The provocation for the order, apparently, was the display of the Bharat Mata portrait at the function, organised by a private organisation.

The notice was allegedly issued while the Governor, who is also the Chancellor of the university, was already attending the function. The registrar, however, rejected the allegation, holding that the order was issued before the Governor reached the venue.

Disregarding reservations by the government and protests by pro-Left outfits, the Governor has made it a regular feature to display the Bharat Mata portrait at his functions.

The suspension of the registrar was revoked by the university syndicate, dominated by pro-LDF members. The syndicate decision, however, failed to settle the matter as the VC overruled it, making an ad hoc appointment to the post of registrar.

As the situation remains complex, the administrative campus of the university in the state capital was stormed by the pro-CPI(M) campus outfit Students Federation of India (SFI) the other day. The SFI and other pro-Left campus outfits allege that the Governor is saffronising higher education centres.

Amid all these wrangles, the ‘pada pooja’ ritual conducted in some private schools has sparked yet another row. General Education Minister V. Sivankutty objected to it, holding that this kind of ritual is ‘unscientific and undemocratic’ and does not align with the prime goals of modern education, such as inculcating scientific consciousness among children.

The Governor has joined the issue, saying that paying respect to teachers is a lofty tradition of the nation.

Recently, a section of Muslim clerics came out against the General Education Department’s move to introduce Zumba dance as a medium to relieve student stress. They held that such open display of body movements is nothing but vulgar, and as such, not acceptable. The government, however, stood its ground.

The Muslim organisations have also resented certain changes suggested in school timings, holding that it would clash with the prayer schedules of students from the community.

Non-partisan educationists, meanwhile, have expressed serious concern over the strife in the education sector, holding that the students are the ultimate sufferers of the rot seeping into the system.