The hot topic these days is the impending reservation laws extending it to all education institutes including the super specialty and private once. There is a fair possibility that the same will be extended to private sector. Personally I feel is the typical state preserving state rather than its people which is the guiding force behind this. However I refrain from commenting on the fairness of it all, because well I think I don't really know if cast discrimination really exists at All places (IIT/IIMS) etc to justify its extension to all institutes. Personally I think that specialty institutes like IIT/IIMS are not meant for the masses so it'll be counter productive to extend quotas to these. There are elite institutes meant for people already trained in various disciplines and as such should be open to all who can make it on merit.
The thing is that India never really in its mediaeval and modern history celebrated merit. Meritocracy was more an exception than rule. Cast is the same phenomena. its based on birth. And these holier than thou political parties are no exception. Look at how dynasties are preserved and celebrated in nearly all parties.
Anyways, trying not to digress I come back to my original thoughts. The abdication of state of its duty to citizens is also apparent in extending quota to private institutes. Most folks will admit that quotas should be at primary level. And I'll say government primary schools. but the fact remain that these seem to be so moribund that parents would rather not send their kids to these. Hence the clamour for quota in private schools, which are arguably better. If there is indeed discrimination based on caste, then lets open good schools which primarily cater to lower caste students. They should also admit enough upper caste students so that the 2 can mingle and develop a healthy respect for each other. These should also be neccessorily residential, and give decent scholarships to students. I believe West Bengal has proposed some such model, and I think that that is the step in right way. The problem is a lack of oppurtunity and that is what should be treated.
My fear is that quota will bring government control in a disguised way to private schools and that is the real danger. Our ruling classes have proved such self servient that they will make private school seats an avenue of dole. Remember the license/quota raj? It might make a comeback in schools! Someone has said the people get what they deserve; I think I notice this trait in Indians. For us, life is always a zero sum game. In order to gain, my neighbour must loose.
There is however a silver lining in my views to all this. When Mandal was brought in, I was in senior schools and like most of my other classmates was dismayed. I was in Allahabad and there the dream of most students was to be a government employee. I did not want that. And I could see that now many of us, will stop looking to government and go into private sector, which is where money is. And in many ways money is power.
History proved me right, and that is why I believe politicians now want quota in private sector. No one talks about employment generation accelerated which will produce more jobs and by extension, all sections will get a job. If I have heard our politicians correctly 60% of Indians are 'backward' casts (Including scheduled). so I find it self evident that lets say if 90% of Indians are employed, assuming that all backward casts get employed only after all forward casts get employed because of discrimination, even that only 10% of backward casts will be unemployed. Than the state can do something for them. Alas no one talks about this, because our mentality is such. If God were to come and give us a boon, it seems we will instead of asking for 2 cows, ask that my neighbour's cow dies.
So Mandal ended up the clamour for government jobs for most students, Mandal 2 will also benefit in a round about way. Look at Delhi university admissions. Apparently tons of students this year got 90%+ in 12th. So for the top colleges, BCOM, Eco (hons) etc have cut offs of 97%! Many bright students unable to get into top colleges are planning to go abroad. Now lets face it, our higher education is mostly crap, churning out graduates unfit for most work non-clerical. so if more Indians do go abroad and study in good colleges there, it can only benefit.
I also think that most countries don't really know about India. So this 4th wave, Indians going abroad for studies will bring Indian culture closer to many countries of the world. and I mean many countries, not just US/UK/Australia, because I suspect so many students will now routinely go out that many countries will start targeting them. It also gives India leverage with those countries.
This 4th Wave, of Indian students, many of whom will end up world citizens, will raise India's mind share across the world. Besides these bright souls will end up raising the awareness of folks back home about the rest of the world. Once enough students start going abroad, there will be information/infrastructure available to all (irrespective of caste) who can make it to a top university. If I have it in me to go to Harvard/MIT/IIT, why would I settle for anything less. What hampers is the lack of training and information, and that would be taken care of by the pioneers. Instead of competing for seats in the top 50 colleges of India, our students will compete with the world for world's top 500 and get there.
It time Indians come to fact that the rest of the world is not some morally corrupt sink pit of humanity but is a vibrant mass of diverse culture as good as any other and in many ways much more progressive.
It’s my hope that this mass emigration, will end up making a global country once again.
Amen
