I have just returned
from the examination hall at the Narayan Jagannath Vaidya College aka
NJV. It was a Matric Board examination and I was provided to write
the cherished ethical principles prophesized by some of the most
enlightened and respected men among the entire humanity, including
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), Prophet Moses (A.S.), Gautama Buddha, Shri
Krishna, Zarathustra and Guru Nanik.
The difficult part
was not to memorize their teachings but was to write them in a
building which once stood tall as a symbol of enlightenment it self –
when it was erected as the first government school in Sindh in 1885,
but today, leaving aside the awe-striking architecture, words like
enlightenment and spirit of knowledge had completely disappeared. The
scenes of open cheating and authority immersed with pride and
impoliteness were prevalent and it was an experience filled with
shame and disgust.
The more dismal
reality was that, these were the few privileged members of the
Pakistani youth who could even access education but no one seemed to
recognize that it was not education that was being delivered, instead
ignorance was being furthered, that too with pride. For anyone with
the slightest of foresight and value for education, stepping in there
would have been a distressing reality.
If we are to
implement the Right to Free and Compulsory Education - enshrined in
the Constitution Article 25 A, anytime soon in Pakistan, we must
debate and re-conceptualize what we mean by Education!!
