Your cover story ‘Neta-babu brotherhood destroying private education’ (EW July) is overdue and timely. Although government animosity towards private schools — which provide education to half of India’s school-going children — is several decades old, it has become more blatant in the Covid-19 era.

Several state governments are making the most of this unprecedented crisis to push privately promoted schools over the edge by issuing ill-considered circulars advising deferred payment and/or waiver of school fees. In the circumstances, it is imperative for educated middle class parents to support their children’s schools.

They need to understand that non-payment of fees will have disastrous long-term consequences. It is time to stand up for the future of our children and the nation which is intrinsically intertwined with the fate of India’s private schools.

Mira Sawhney on email

Useful information

Thank you for your insightful cover story (EW July) which highlights the negative impact on education of India’s politician-bureaucrat ‘bromance’.

Had the prime minister allocated even 1 percent of his loudly proclaimed Rs. 20 lakh crore economic stimulus package to education, it would have helped budget private schools, currently facing severe financial crises, to survive. Special thanks for the national round-up of fees and online classes regulation in different states of the country. Very useful.

Aarti Singh
Delhi

Support Katha!

I am a regular reader of EducationWorld and loved your Eyewitness report ‘Katha: Alternative education success story’ (EW July).

Geeta Dharmarajan, founder of Katha, must be complimented for using alternative pedagogies such as storytelling to provide education to 9.8 million slum children deprived of half-decent schooling. In particular, Katha’s initiative to mobilise 3,000 librarians to promote the reading skills of 1 million children needs the support of all right-thinking people.

Baby Singh
Chennai

Amazing coverage

My sincere compliments to the EducationWorld team for the labour-of-love cover story (EW June) featuring 50 great institutional leaders nationwide. I was amazed that not only national, but also state-level education leaders across 15 major states of India were included in your inspirational cover feature

My computation of the common solutions by number recommended by these leaders are: rectify poor Internet connectivity (11); modernise teacher training, pedagogy and modes of student-teacher interaction (10); reform/revisit/reorganise school curriculums (8); provide for infrastructure enrichment, specifically for digital learning and bridging the digital divide (7); promote blended learning in K-12 education (7); prioritise 21st century skills in future education reforms (6); deregulate controls on private schools and universities (6); involve parents and democratise school administration (6); promote research on education (4); increase expenditure on public education in the Union budget (4).

Other suggestions included according priority to co-curricular and sports education, prioritising early childhood education, promoting vocational skills, caring for rural schools and the underprivileged, conducting TETs, setting standards for online education, reforming the examination system and adopting education vouchers.

The Union HRD ministry and state education departments will greatly benefit if they study the recommendations of these education leaders with excellent track records

Again, compliments for this mega exercise!

Dr. A.S. Seetharamu,
Former professor, ISEC & senior consultant, SSA, Bangalore

Identity confusion

We are greatly enthused that SSN College of Engineering, Chennai is ranked among the Top 10 private engineering colleges countrywide in the EW India Private Engineering Colleges Rankings 2020-21 (EW April). Re our NIRF ranking, your magazine has published NR (not ranked).

Please note that our college has been ranked #44 in NIRF 2020. However on the official NIRF website, SSN is ranked as the Sri Sivasubramaniya Nadar (SSN) College of Engineering. But your survey ranks us as SSN College of Engineering.

Please note that both are one and the same institution.

V.E. Annamalai
Principal-in-charge, SSNCE, Chennai