Lone voice of sanity from Sadar Hills : Make education essential
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: August 27 2016 -

Lone of voice of sanity. That is the call of the Sadar Hills Private Schools Association (SHIPS) to exempt schools within Sadar Hills from any bandh, blockade, rally, strike, agitation and dharna.

And why only Sadar Hills ? This is a legitimate call and something which should be heeded by everyone.

Not in the school calendar, but a look at the reality will tell that most of the schools remain paralysed for major part of each academic year and this is a shame.

As if this is not enough, there are times when even private coaching classes and tuition classes are asked to wind up for a certain period of time and nothing can be more tragic than this.

Jeopardising the academic pursuit of the young students amounts to toying with the future of the land and the people. This is all that more so in this age when excellence is the by word in every aspect of life.

In the face of globalisation, competition today no longer means competing within the State but globally and a poorly equipped student will definitely not be able to stand up to the best from across the country and the world.

The question that needs to be asked at this point is, why should young students be used in any issue which should ideally be tackled by the adults of society.

What point does it serve to herd the students from their classrooms and make them take to the street ? Or is it a case of it being easier to mobilise students from their schools ?

One reason why numerous parents, elders and guardians are compelled to send their children outside Manipur to study is the constant disturbance to their academic pursuit.

Not all parents are that comfortably placed to send their children outside, but the prevailing reality compels them to send their children outside.

When half the academic year of the students is lost due to bandhs and other disturbances, then surely parents will have second thoughts about letting their children continue their studies here.

When children should be in the classroom learning from their teachers, here it is the other way round with numerous students being mobilised to take to the street on issues in which they may have little or no understanding at all.

This is wrong. Let there be protest on issues which directly impact the lives of the people, but in the process ensure that young students are left to pursue their academic pursuit.

Let them continue with their studies in the classrooms. After all the best place for them is the classroom, the library, the play ground and certainly not the streets where they will have to confront the police.

SHIPS has made the right noise and hope that others will listen and respect what they have had to say.