Your cover story on the GlobalScholar-EW Young Achievers Awards 2009 (EW February) is inspirational and will have a great impact on young minds. As you rightly state in your letter from the editor, despite an abysmal education system, there’s no shortage of young achievers in our country. This is not only because there are tens of thousands of self-educated, committed and hard-working youth countrywide, but also because a minority of intelligent and supportive parents encourage their children to pursue co-curricular and extra-curricular education beyond mere academics.
The enabling parents of your young achievers are a good example for all parents to follow.
Srinivas Raghavan
Bangalore
Skilling India
I read your special report ‘India awakes to vocational education’ (EW February) with great interest. However in your 4,000 word feature you missed the point that the real reason why Indian society has neglected vocational education and training for more than half a century, is because of a deep-seated brahmanical disdain for blue-collar work. Disdain for hands-on and manual work is rooted in our caste system which accords the highest status to people who live by their intellect and learning, and lowest status to people who work and soil their hands to earn a living. Any national initiative focusing on reviving VET (vocational education and training) in India must address these deep-rooted societal attitudes.
I agree that Indian industry has a very important role to play in helping VET professionals gain social respect and standing. By emphasising and acknowledging skills development education as vital to the growth and development of their businesses, Indian industry can boost student enrolment in VET programmes. A first step for them would be to collaborate with reputed vocational education providers to accredit and certify their courses. This would enhance the market value of industry accredited VET courses.
Pramod Tiwari
Delhi
Sick society
Re your postscript piece ‘Ethnic pride’ (EW January). The truth is that the squa-lor, corruption and sheer avarice that is ubiquitous in India has not only made the whole world contemptuous of self-righteous Indians, but has filled Indians themselves with self-loathing. Hence our preference for “Central Asian looking film heroes, pretending to be Americans and emoting in Hindi”.
Ours is a very sick society on the verge of meltdown.
Abhishek Marwah
Dehradun
Great institution
I was most impressed by your profile of The Daly College, Indore (EW January). What a great institution! I wish I had known about this well-equipped and globally-connected school when I was looking for higher secondary schooling for my daughter ten years ago. But at that time there was no EducationWorld to tell it like it is.
Sumer Singh is right. India’s private schools like Daly College can attract students from around the world. Provided our politicians let them survive.
Akash Mitra
Delhi
Imminent revolution
Your edit ‘agriculture: Great failure of the Delhi imperium’ (EW January) highlighting the indifference of politicians enjoying unlimited perks in Delhi, and not giving a damn about peasants toiling away in the rural hinterland, is spot on.
That’s why the Naxalite movement is gathering strength across the country. It’s true the Naxals don’t have a development programme. But at least they have the time of day for poor peasants and tribals. The revolution is coming; no doubt about that.
Rajeev Kunda
Raigarh
Thanks & credit
With reference to your cover story ‘Helix Technology’s flying start’ (EW January), these guys deserve the thanks and credit of the country for investing their savings in India’s highly regulated education sector. Most people in their shoes would have bought real estate in the Bahamas or Tuscany, with the bundle they made from the sale of their shares in Party Gaming.
I wish them luck!
Venkat T on e-mail
Excellent resource material
Yoginder Sikand’s travelogue ‘Pilgrim’s progress to the northern tip of Indonesia’s largest island’ (EW December), aroused my interest and curiousity.
Describing a museum in Banda Aceh he writes: “The museum features 11th century inscriptions in the Tamil language carved on massive slabs of stone, a legacy of the Chola emperors of South India…” I want to know more about this. Could you e-mail me Yoginder Sikand’s contact details?
Your magazine provides excellent resource material for our voluntary education organisation.
Prof. (Dr.) P. Selvaraj
Coimbatore
Joint effort call
I refer to your editorial ‘Intelligentsia needs to confront corruption” (EW December 2009). Corruption is growing in India because the government system fails to punish transgressors or provide enough safeguards to honest persons who bring their misdeeds to light.
Society as a whole must act boldly, and without any fear to protect honest citizens. To root out corruption, a joint effort of the people, authorities and politicians is required.
Mahesh Kapasi on e-mail