Govt panel moots steps to regulate madrasa system
NEWDELHI: Need for more schools, registration of unregulated madrasas, and admissions under the Right to Education (RTE) Act were some of the issues discussed during a meeting held in July that aimed at helping students from the minority community, according to the minutes of the meeting accessed by Hindustan Times.
The National Monitoring Committee for Minorities Education (NMCME), which is chaired by the human resource development (HRD) minister, had held a meeting on July 6 and the minutes were issued on August 20.
The panel comprised representatives from state governments and Parliament, academics, activists, administrators looking into minority issues and HRD officials. Its primary function is to monitor minority education and the ministry’s schemes for the minorities. It also makes recommendations on issues related to the recognition and affiliation of minority institutes.
“...the minority educational institutions do not admit students based on RTE Act. That should be looked into,” said Gujarat education minister Bhupendrasinh Manubha Chudasama.
Jamshid Khan, another member of the committee, said even as some states have madrasa boards, others such as Maharashtra do not have them. Khan suggested that there should be an all-india madrasa board “with a suitable system for accreditation to ensure academic standards”.
Talat Ahmad, the vice-chancellor of Kashmir University and a former vice-chancellor of Delhi’s Jamia Millia Islamia, said: “There are many students living around Jamia Millia Islamia who apply to Jamia Millia school but we aren’t able to cater to the rising demand. It is desirable that the government opens more and more basic schools for minorities so that the minority children can get good opportunity for studying.”
Professor Azfar Shamshi of TM Bhagalpur University in Bihar appreciated the work done in the field of minority education, but emphasised the need to recognise unregistered madrasas.
The HRD ministry allocates funds to the states to improve the quality of education.
Shamshi said there were two types of madrasas: the registered ones account for 20% of the total institutes. “All the data government has is based on the registered madrasas. There is a need to capture the details of the unregistered ones and bring them within the ambit of registration so that a clear picture is available.”
Delhi University professor Suman Kumar stressed the need to link madrasas with skill development council for job creation.
Minister of state Satya Pal Singh, who chaired the meeting, said the implementation of these suggestions will benefit minority students. He said government inter-colleges can be used for giving coaching to them. “The dropout happens due to poverty. Thus there is a need to engage teachers who can do psychological counselling...,” Singh said.
Zafarul Islam Khan, chairman of the Delhi Minorities Commission, said, “Many states have madarsa boards... This is important to maintain quality and academic standards... an all-india board will also help...,” he said.