Manipur News

IMPHAL, May 14: In an emailed statement the village elders of Chadong village has clarified on the recent Chadong villagers feud which was widely reported in the local dailies.

The statement has claimed that Job kasar does not have a house in Chadong as he sold his house to Asang Kasar some years back and added that he is currently living in the house of his elder sister Philayi Kashung (wife of Ngatangmi Kashung) of Chadong village.

It has further alleged that Job blamed one Malungchang Kashung, a cousin of Ngatangmi Kashung, of instigating Ngatangmi to force him out from his current residence.

In this situation, on 8 May around 6 pm, Horam Kashung, the son of Malungchang came to Job, who was drunk at that time, to clarify the charges levelled against his father. This led to a family feud, but at the end the neighbours came to stop the parties.

That night, around midnight, all of a sudden some armed personnel in four gypsies landed in Chadong accompanied by two residents of the village namely Yaomi Kasar and Ashang Kasar. They rushed to the house of Malungchang and tried to arrest his eldest son Berlin, it said.

By this time the woman folks of the village have gathered and they managed to snatch back the eldest son from the hands of the armed personnel. Surprisingly, one Benjamin Kashung, a close relative of Ngatangmi, was taken away by those armed persons (accompanied by Yaomi Kasar and Ashang Kasar). This was done without any arrest Memo or any intimation, and the villagers were left behind with utter shock and feared his fate, the statement claimed.

The statement signed by M. Ringai, MH Ramkahao, K. Valungchang said that by the that time most villagers were gathered, and infuriated by this act of the armed personnel and the two villagers who were accompanying them.

The immediate retaliation by the uncontrollable mob was to vandalize the house of Yaomi Kasar and Ashang Kasar, it said.

The next morning on May 9, the Litan Police OC and SDPO, Ukhrul and SDO Phungyar and their teams arrived at Chadong and made a spot enquiry. Yaomi Kasar, Ashang Kasar, James Kasar and others also arrived at the village. James is the elder brother of Yaomi and he is also the disputed Head Man of Chadong Village. The officers concern have informed that a meeting of the two parties have been called on 14 May and the Chadong Village Authority looks forward to an amicable solution to the issue while seeking justice for those wrongly put under difficult situation, it said.

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2012/05/another-clarification-on-chadong-feud/

By Rajkumar Bobichand
In Manipur, the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) seems has a different meaning. It appears that most people who are administrating and managing of school education in Manipur consider the meaning of the Right to Education as compulsory promotion of students of primary and middle school i.e. standard I to VIII; there should not be any public/board examinations and the children should not retained.

But the intention of the RTE Act is that every child in India aged 6-14 years has the fundamental right to education. The all children should be educated not just given certificates. And the RTE Act continues to lay emphasis on what inputs the bureaucrats and political forces believe are necessary to have better education in India. It may be noted that some key clauses of the RTE Act say that no child can be held back until the completion of elementary education, unrecognized schools are banned, donations and capitation fees are banned, interviews for admission are banned, 25% of seats in private schools are to be reserved for the poor (to be reimbursed, based on a formula, by the state), the responsibility to get kids into schools is with the government and all schools have to adhere to the prescribed norms and standards within three years. Some of these clauses appear to be very noble. But the big question is – How far would it be implemented in letter and in spirit?  Can it really be delivered to the children and society? Still the fiend lies in the details and in the delivery.

In the meantime, the Supreme Court of India in its verdict on the constitutionality of the Right to Education Act in relation to the reservation of seats for Economically Weaker Section (EWS) and Socially Disadvantaged (SD) children has rightly upheld the principle of integration. 

However, there will be challenges faced by all concerned namely, school managements, teachers, parents and children in enforcing the law both in letter and in spirit. Will the children from the families who belong to the Economically Weaker Sections and Socially Disadvantaged be warmly welcomed by all the private schools in Manipur? We all know that government schools will not have any problem about the reservation of seats. The only problem lies with the government schools is that even the very poor parents who live on hand to mouth are not willing to send their children to government school for their education. This is because the parents know that it will be very difficult for their children to get quality education from government schools. 

On the other hand, the parents cannot afford to send their children to prestigious and top ranking private schools. And the reality is that not all government schools are bad. Similarly, not all private schools are good. But in the context of Manipur, it becomes a need to somehow send and afford their children in a private school so that their children also can get education to compete with their compatriots.  But the question is that – will the private schools in Manipur be able to respect the verdict of the Supreme Court? Will the Economically Weaker Section and Socially Disadvantaged children be properly identified in Manipur? Will it not affect the self esteem of a child if he is identified as EWS and SD? Will it be possible for the government authorities, the managements and teachers to treat the children same?

On the other hand, in the culture of Manipuri society, how far will it be practical – which parents will say their children should be identifies as EWS and SD for admission in such private schools?

Now, the all the schools must implement RTE within three years. But, in Manipur, there are instances where the managements of the schools used to interpret the RTE to suit their agenda only. Moreover, many schools will not be able to meet these criteria by the end of three years. The impact will be felt the most by the private, unaided budget schools, where enrolment numbers are growing fast and which many parents prefer over government schools.  On the other hand, these budget schools do not have the financial means to meet the criteria set. Most of them invest in basic infrastructure; their teachers are not necessarily qualified as per the rules and regulations set by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and the Board of Secondary Education Manipur (BSEM). The teachers are paid low salaries even as low as Rs 1,500 per month and as high as Rs. 7, 500 per month as against Rs 5,500 to Rs 15, 000 plus at schools in other states of India. The reasons for these that all because these schools charge a low fee of around Rs100-500 per month, which poorer parents can afford. Many parents prefer to pay a fee and send their kids to a private school because they have lost faith in government schools and, in many cases, the teachers in private schools are more passionate and dedicated.  Even though many people who have been good and dedicated teachers in private schools have been appointed in government schools and its various programmes like SSA and RMSA, it is not certain that the teachers will they continue to be more passionate and dedicated. All these because that the bureaucracy and corrupt system and practices of the government will make them lethargy and kills their skills and spirit of teaching children. Now, the private in Manipur seem unable to employ dedicated and qualified teachers. In this critical juncture, are the private schools in Manipur ready for RTE?

Read more / Original news source: http://kanglaonline.com/2012/05/rte-are-private-schools-in-manipur-ready/