The Hindu : National : Diverse views on ways to increase Muslim literacy

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Sunday, Jul 04, 2004

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National

Diverse views on ways to increase Muslim literacy

By Our Staff Correspondent

NEW DELHI, JULY 3. Opinion among the Muslims over the strategies to be adopted to overcome illiteracy in the community varies widely. While some are for a separate board to promote education, others say the community itself has to wake up to the problem.

So diverse were the opinions expressed at a conference here today on "Minority welfare and education" that Urdu writer Javed Akhtar "hung his head in shame,'' when the Vice-Chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University, Naseem Ahmed, suggested 75 per cent reservation for Muslims in the aided or un-aided Muslim educational institutions which should not include the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Dalits and Other Backward Classes of non-Muslims because, according to him, the problem was more serious among the Muslims.

Despite some protest over Mr. Ahmed's statement Mr. Akhtar was vocal in expressing himself. "I have no problem with the University or its Vice-Chancellor but it is shameful to ask for reservation for Muslims and not share it with non-Muslim SC/ST and OBCs,'' he said. By the time the session ended it was obvious that Mr. Akhtar had a larger fan following than Mr. Ahmed.

Earlier, introducing the subject, Mushirul Hassan, Vice-Chancellor of the Jamia Millia Islamia University, suggested the setting up of an All-India Muslim Education Board to ensure implementation of the existing mechanism and monitoring of the implementation. The primary and secondary schools needed to be modernised and the community needed to rise to the occasion instead of depending totally on the Government for funding, he said.

"The Muslims need access to education even if it means departure from rules like exempting them from entrance exams of professional colleges. Similarly, `madrasas' need to be modernised to face the present-day challenges as they have been a driving force behind producing rationalist forces,'' he said.

Social activist Bilkis Latif said that the community had to come forward to face the challenge. "I have never felt like a minority,'' she said almost stunning the audience most of whom complained of inadequacy of funds and infrastructure in the schools.

Former bureaucrat Moosa Reza said that the setting up of commissions alone was not the solution. "The problems of the Muslim community in the field of education need to addressed,'' he said while stressing on the universalisation of education and the monitoring of the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan in the minority-dominated areas.

Agreeing with Mr. Reza, columnist Rafiq Zakaria said Muslims could not progress in isolation.He blamed the Muslim community for the state of affairs.

Senior Member of Parliament Saifuddin Soz, however, felt that setting up of commissions was not a workable proposition since the Constitution guaranteed the right of education to minorities. Instead, he suggested a statutory commission that would address their grievances.

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