Reminder to Dr. Pinto

Your cover story ‘India’s fastest growing schools chain’ (EW June) highlighting the achievements of Dr. Augustine Pinto and Mrs. Grace Pinto in establishing a chain of 110 Ryan International Schools providing affordably priced quality English medium education in a mere 25 years, was amazing and inspiring. Dr. Pinto seems to have discovered the methodology to beat red tape and bureaucratic delay by opening schools in the constituencies of powerful leaders of major political parties!

In the initial days of the ‘licence-permit-quota Raj’, he would have undoubtedly faced unimaginable hurdles. But now, thanks to the quality education he provides, politicians of all parties are clamouring for RIGI schools in their constituencies.

I was particularly pleased to learn that Dr. Pinto is a God-fearing individual. This quality will guarantee his continued success. However he should constantly remember that ours is a country with diverse cultures and religious faiths and his 200,000 students should be broadminded and respect the diversity in our unique unity. That is the crying need of every school!

G. Neelakantan
Bangalore

Salutary mission

I enjoyed your latest cover story on the genesis and growth of the Ryan International Group of Institutions (EW June). Dr. Augustine Pinto’s personal journey from a struggling school teacher in Mumbai to promoter of 110 Ryan schools with an aggregate enrollment of 200,000 students across the country is truly remarkable. Let alone middle class parents, even domestic workers and daily wage labour aspire to English medium education for their children. But state governments and politicians persistently ignore this popular demand for English learning and inflict vernacular education on the children of the poor in government schools.

In the light of this large-scale deprivation, Dr. Pinto’s mission to provide English medium school education to as many children as possible is salutary. He deserves the gratitude of the nation for establishing state-of-the-art schools offering international standard education at affordable prices. Indeed for the thousands of education entrepreneurs trying to promote schools and colleges offering education that people want against all odds, his story is inspirational. Kudos to you for giving him the recognition he deserves!

Shailaja Mathur
Delhi

AICTE alternative

You’ve hit the nail on the head in the special report ‘Curious case of India’s unemployable engineers’ (EW June). The major reason for the unemployability of the thousands of engineers that Indian universities and colleges churn out is deficiency of English language skills.

I also believe outdated syllabuses are a major factor behind large numbers of college graduates being rejected by companies. To solve this problem, it’s a good idea for engineering colleges to draw up their syllabuses in consultation with industry. An independent board comprising engineering academics and captains of industry needs to be set up to draft and revise syllabuses and monitor academic standards country-wide. This board should also arrange for internships in companies for six months to a year to enable students to learn on-the-job skills. But before this board is promoted, AICTE needs to close down!

Surajprasad Sharma
Mumbai

Buddhist trail lacunae

I checked out the latest issue of EducationWorld on the net and noticed the new improved website. This was long overdue.

I also read the leisure and travel piece ‘The Buddhist pilgrimage circuit’ (EW June). I seriously doubt your assertion that (Buddhist) tourists are flocking to these pilgrimage centres. All of these sites in Bihar are Naxal infested where only God worries about law and order.

Then there’s the Bihar tourism department. Whatever may be written in glossy brochures, the reality is that the state’s tourism department does not run even one bus from any point to these Buddhist tourist centres. The department is bankrupt and whatever resources it may have are sapped by senior officials and ministers. It will take many years before tourism (even religious tourism) becomes a major business in this land. Travelling here is no different from travelling in some parts of Pakistan or Afghanistan.

So, after reading the literature and trying to come to terms with the ground realities, I’ve come to the conclusion that I should not recommend these sites to tourists.

Arun Srivastav
Mumbai

Explaining international schools

I read your cover story ‘The world’s most ambitious education portal’ (EW May) with great interest. The work of Kal Raman and his team at GlobalScholar Inc to erect a multi-featured e-learning platform which will offer quality education at affordable prices to students in all countries, needs to be commended.

However it’s pertinent to bear in mind that GlobalScholar is a private, for-profit initiative. Therefore it’s unlikely to be appreciated by student communities which have become accustomed to substandard education provided at highly subsidised prices. The only people ready to pay for quality education are from the tiny upper middle class, who are aware that what’s given free is invariably of poor quality. This explains the growth of expensive ‘international’ schools.

Swati Mukherjee
Kolkata