About a year back, the education department had made “Surya Namaskar” compulsory for the students of all government schools in the state. The order was challenged in the state High Court. The HC, in its judgment announced last week, held that the government had no authority to thrust “Surya Namaskar” upon unwilling children. The petition challenging the decision said that while performing “Surya Namaskar”, the children were expected to recite some “mantras”, which was unacceptable to non-Hindu students.

Besides “Surya Namaskar”, the state education minister Ms. Archana Chitnis had issued an order making it mandatory for children to recite “Bhojan Mantra” before partaking of their mid-day meals. She also announced that school teachers would, henceforth, be called “Rishis”. The names of the school teachers will be prefixed with the title “Rishi”. Five lakh badges with their names inscribed on them as “Rishi” so and so would be handed over to the school teachers by September 13. The teachers would put on these badges when on duty.

Both the decisions kicked up fierce controversies. Several organisations wedded to Secularism bitterly opposed both the decisions. The main opposition Congress too criticised the moves. On September 4, a delegation comprising representatives of the National Secular Forum, Progressive Writers' association, Janwadi Lekhak sangh, Catholic Church, Jamait-e-Islami and Indian Muslim Association met the Governor and handed him over a memorandum, which pointed out that the two decisions were against the letter and spirit of the Constitution. The government was seeking to impose Hindu rituals on the students. The memorandum said that the decisions would certainly not be acceptable to the followers of other religions and would sow seeds of division on religious lines. Dividing young minds on religious lines was fraught with dangerous consequences, including weakening of national unity. The delegation urged the Governor to intervene and direct the state government to reverse its decisions.

The protest had its effect. The next day, which happened to be the Teacher's Day, the Education Minister announced that the government never intended to give the “Rishi” nomenclature to school teachers. But while saying so, the minister forgot that on August 25, a government press release had announced that badges carrying the names of teachers as “Rishi” would be given to five lakh teachers. She did not clarify the government's position on the issue of “Bhojan Mantra”. Also, the education department is yet to react to the Court verdict on “Surya Namaskar”.

Grand preparations were made in Bhopal to celebrate the Teacher's Day. The state level function was held with the Governor as the chief guest. The celebrations, however, were marred by the presence of over 15,000 school teachers in Bhopal to press for their demands. The teachers' representatives alleged that despite several assurances, the state government had not acceded to their demand for equal pay for equal work. There are several categories of school teachers in Madhya Pradesh and they are paid at vastly different rates. Some get up to Rs. 20, 000 a month while others have to make do with only Rs. 2,000. And this when they are teaching same subjects to the same students.

Teachers numbering 15 to 20 thousand from various places in the state gathered at Bhopal on Teacher's Day. They congregated at a public ground in the city. Angry speeches were made threatening indefinite closure of government schools. Subsequently, the teachers announced their intention to march to the Chief Minister's residence. All of them took off their shirts and began moving towards the CM's residence.

The administration told the teachers that they could meet the Education Minister provided they went back to the venue of their public meeting. The teachers rejected this suggestion and insisted that they would settle for nothing short of meeting the CM. The police then used force to disperse them. Teargas shells and lathis were used by the police. The teachers retaliated with stones. A large number of teachers were injured in the free-for-all that followed. Many of them were arrested. Those arrested refused to take bail. Observers feel that the ugly scenes of teachers being beaten up on the Teacher's Day could have been avoided had the Education minister or the chief minister agreed to meet their delegation.

Besides school teachers, college and university teachers are also agitating to press for their demands. They want new pay-scales as recommended by the UGC. The government college and university teachers are on an indefinite strike.

The state government, on its part, has made it clear that it was not possible for it to implement UGC scales. The teachers, however, have chosen to continue their strike.

Thus, teaching is at a standstill in the schools, the colleges and universities in the state. Needless to say, the students are the worst sufferers. (IPA Service)