JOIN US'Progress requires Muslims to be educated'
Members from All India Muslim Education Society said majority of the Muslim community need education. The women and children of the community have to become literate to witness progress in one of the largest minority population of the country.
“Instead of the focus being given to the religious sentiment of the minorities, education should have been given similar importance. Muslims are lagging behind in education,” said Azam Baig, member of the society in a conference on Tuesday.
The society has spread to south India with the aim to promote education to the minority community. “We are running various schools and colleges in there, specially our grip is strong in Kerala where Muslims are more.
There are other units of the society in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh. We also have plans to expand in northern India now,” said T P Imbichammad, secretary general of the society.
In Delhi-NCR, the society have built a college in Greater Noida. “The project in Delhi NCR has started last year. A Rs 5 crore project in Noida is also in process, besides Haryana and Faridabad. Enrolment phase is going on in the Greater Noida educational institute,” said Khwaja Khaleelullah, member handling the Delhi/NCR unit.
Calling the Right to Education (RTE) Act as infrastructure specific act, the members stated to make provisions for budget schools. “There are schools providing good quality education without grand infrastructure. Rabindranath Tagore started such a school.
Most of the Muslims are underprivileged or middle-class who want quality education, without world class infrastructure,” said another member. Under RTE, the schools need to meet several infrastructure requirements, including a playground.
As far Madarsa education is concerned, the society is tying up with the registered Madarsas which are willing to incorporate modern subjects like science, computer science and mathematics. “There are a huge number of Madarsas which do not want to include such subjects. We can explain the pros and cons of that, beyond that its their fundamental right to choose what they want,” said Justice Fakhruddin, member and former judge.