The committee headed by a former IAS officer had suggested that the best way out was for the government to lay emphasis on providing English medium and quality educational institutions in areas with high populations of Muslims.
For Hindu and Muslim right-wingers, madrasas are among the most polarising topics, attracting extreme opinions from both sides of the ideological and religious divide. A much more nuanced view was put forth by the state-government appointed Mehmood-ur-Rehman committee. The committee, which delivered its report in 2013, had pointed out that although a small proportion of students attended these institutions, their traditionalism was a matter of concern.
The committee headed by a former IAS officer had suggested that the best way out was for the government to lay emphasis on providing English medium and quality educational institutions in areas with high populations of Muslims.
The report of this Chief Minister's study group, which was titled 'The Socio-Economic and Educational Backwardness of the Muslims in Maharashtra,' has estimated that contrary to the position of the Hindu right, just 2.3% of Muslim children in Maharashtra study in madrasas.
"Although a small proportion of students go to Madrasa and Maktabs, the traditionalism of these institutions has remained a matter of concern. The improvement and help offered by the government in the past has been pervaded with many controversies. Many claim that Madrasas are religious institutions and as such the government should not intervene. Even many Muslim scholars fear that by offering to help Madrasas, the government wants to extend control on the same, hence the government offer of setting up Madrasa Board in the state is resisted. Although, the need of modernization of Madrasas is felt by both the Muslim Ulema and the government, the mechanism to achieve the goal remains a problem," noted Rehman in the report submitted to the erstwhile Congress- NCP led state government.
"The Ulema want to maintain their overall control on Madrasas, while the government intends to formalize Madrasa education establishing a regulatory framework to administer education in Madrasas. The solution is not easy, given the suspicion and mistrust that is evident among the Ulema body and the government. The best way out is that the government should lay emphasis on providing English medium and quality educational institutions in Muslim concentrated areas. The recent studies including that by the Sachar Committee also report that the Muslim community shows a desire to shift to modern education but lack of accessibility to quality education and financial problems come in the way. Easy and cheap access to modern English medium educational institutions along with financial support to those who need it, appear as a feasible solution," the report suggested.
It noted that the Madrasa education system needed to be reviewed and mechanisms should be developed to mainstream formal education being imparted in these institutions and necessary financial aid be provided to those willing to upgrade the content of the secular education. The state should also permit those Madrasas who wish to provide education in English medium.
"Even though a small number of students take education exclusively in Madrasas, we recommend establishing Madrasa Education Board at the state level. This would facilitate higher education for the Madrasa educated. The Board should be linked with the central and state boards of primary and secondary education. Nevertheless, the registration should not be made compulsory for the Madrasas and their joining the Board should remain a voluntary effort," the report said.
"Further, modernization of Madrasa scheme cannot replace programmes and schemes for the Government recognized formal education. A department having eminent Muslim scholars may be established by the Maharashtra State Minorities Commission to develop adequate textbooks for registered Madrasas falling within Modernization of Madrasa scheme. ITI kind of technical courses can also be introduced into Madrasas," it added.
"In addition to Urdu medium schools, English and Marathi medium schools should also be established in Muslim concentrated areas. This is important for two reasons, firstly, for many Muslims going to Urdu medium institutions is more of a compulsion than a choice, as these are often the only educational institutions available in Muslim concentrated areas. Secondly, English medium schools are often very costly and Muslims find it difficult to afford these institutions, besides finding difficulty in getting admission to these institutes," the report said.
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