#dnaEdit: Much ado about little

The legendary American singer Pete Seeger once said the best way to kill a song is to make it officious. The same fate seemed to have struck the community of students and teachers this Teachers’ Day. By turning the  Teachers’ Day celebrations into an official ritual, Prime Minister Narendra Modi — the prime and the only mover of his dispensation —  yet again reiterated his resolve to dominate every aspect of governance and perhaps daily life as well. Does that sound ominous? Yes, the intent behind such a personality-cult-based project could appear to be so. Especially when at the end of such strenuous efforts, the Prime Minister’s speech, at best could be described as disappointing, and at worst — mundane and rambling. There were desultory and interesting references — for instance, about students in Japan cleaning their school compounds or Modi urging students to sweat and play hard. And not just bury themselves in compulsory school reading. But at the end of his address to this huge gathering, one is left wondering about the whole point of this hyped up exercise. 

In fact, if anything, the Prime Minister’s interactive session had more to offer in its informal question-answer session. For the first time perhaps, students across India, had the opportunity to put questions to the Prime Minister who shed his ‘pracharak’ skin and interacted in a lighter vein with the students.    

Here was Modi — the storyteller —  fielding questions ranging from a student from the North-East wondering how could he become Prime Minister to another student from the Bastar region asking what this government plans to do for girl students. But this interaction with students could have taken place on any ordinary day and without the hype that preceded the Teacher’s Day controversy.    

Understandably, anxieties multiplied during the preparations of the Teachers’ Day as the Human Resource Development ministry issued directives (read as fiats) to schools — some of them outrightly absurd if not comical.

Unnerved by such peremptory instructions, the responses of schools ranged from threatening “strict action” for non-attendance of students to marking them on the Prime Minister’s speech. In a circular issued on September 3, the Delhi Public School (DPS) called for compulsory attendance and warned of “strict action” against the absentees. The bizarre visual of a Thane Zilla Parishad School ferrying a television set by boat for the occasion spoke volumes about the extent to which schools were forced to go to comply with government directives. 

Did Modi’s speech make an impact on students? If any one thing has been conceded by Modi’s friends and foes alike,  that is his consummate oratorial skills. This perhaps is the first occasion of its kind where the Prime Minister has made a direct connect with students. That the special address comes at a time of crisis distorting the student-teacher relationship and amid regular reports of intemperate and even abusive behaviour on the part of teachers as well as students, imbues it with special significance. The situation on the ground is no less bleak. The quality of education showing no signs of improving even as students in less privileged schools are unable to measure up to basic standards of learning. The plight of teachers is equally disheartening.

According to reports, while government school teachers get pay scales ranging from Rs20,000 to Rs40,000 per month depending on their qualification, bulk of private teachers survive on a pittance. But Modi’s decision to stage a novel show was more about himself and his image rather than the fundamental issues that underline the Teachers’ Day.