Stop commercialisation of education, strengthen public health institutions: Tarigami
Jammu, Mar 12: Criticizing the new education policy, CPI (M) legislator Muhammad Yusuf Tarigami on Wednesday said the policy promotes commercialisation, centralisation and communalisation of the education sector. He cautioned that the continuous efforts are being made to distort history.
Speaking in the Legislative Assembly on demands for grants, Trigami said that the government mentioned that the new education policy would be effectively pursued.
“But I have my different views on it”, he said. Drawing the attention of the House towards the Naya Kashmir manifesto, Tarigami said that it includes unique provisions for education and health. “The manifesto promises about the universalization of education at a time when there was no mention of it anywhere in the world”, Tarigami said. He said that provisions were also made to ensure healthcare for the poorest of poor.
Referring to the new education policy, Tarigami said that it is defined by three C’s—commercialization, centralisation and communalisation”.
“The commercialisation component of the policy seeks to turn education into a money making enterprise ”, he said. The legislator said that the policy also aimed at centralizing education by appointing vice chancellors for all states and union territories. “Education is in the concurrent list of the constitution. Now vice chancellors are being nominated from the union government”, he said. Tarigami said that the education aims to equip individuals with reasoning, debate and discussion, while cultivating a scientific temperament. “But the current dispensation in New Delhi is making efforts to twist history upside down”, he said. The legislator said that the process of knowledge itself had been impacted by the virus of communalism. He said that the new education policy had nothing to offer to poor sections of society. “Reforming education system was a major challenge before this government”, he said.
As a legislator from BJP attempted to interrupt, Tarigami urged the House to appoint a sub-committee to assess the situation in universities across Jammu and Kashmir. "Ask the academics teaching in these universities about their conditions," he said. Tarigami said that the new education policy should not be reinforced. “The government should not surrender public education and public health to market”, he said. Tarigami said that public health institutions like SKIMS, Soura need to be strengthened. “If institutions like SKIMS are weakened, where will poor patients go?”, he questioned. The CPI(M) legislator said that he had once raised concerns about SKIMS' autonomy, only to be told that the era of autonomy was over. “SKIMS is an institution for the poor , it should be taken care of”, he said. Drawing attention towards the rural health sector, Tarigmai said, "In Anantnag Medical College, four patients are sharing a single bed, and the same situation prevails in other hospitals." He also demanded that Anantnag Degree College be granted the status of a deemed university.
