Outsource, but be accountable

Arundhati Chavan

When schools in Mumbai outsource some of their facilities, they should take responsibility for them. When they hire an outside agency to run their bus services, provide food in the canteen, take care of security on campus or organise excursions, the schools are actually doing that for their own convenience. It’s an additional exercise that they prefer to hand over to someone else. But even when they contract someone to do these things for them, it still remains, and should be the school’s responsibility.

How can they say, if any mishap happens, that it is the outsourced agency’s problem, not theirs? This is why parents are losing faith in the system. Earlier, schools used to arrange the trips. Now, the fact that they are farming it out to another organisation, is making parents insecure. They often refuse to send their children on school picnics because they don’t feel the children will be safe. This never happened earlier.

Given outsourcing has become a way of life for schools - sometimes even a necessity - there are many ways they can at least be more responsible. First, they could take the local Parent-Teacher Association into confidence on things like selecting which agency they should outsource to. They should also enlist the help of parents - many of them will be happy to monitor the running of these services, since it is after all about the safety from their children. And when there is monitoring, the agencies too will also be more careful.

Schools must do a thorough background check of an agency, looking into not just the way the services are run, but also the training of the staff running them. Some schools have a committee to regulate this process; those who don’t, should start immediately. So when a school charges for a facility, the school authorities must either be accountable or not have the service at all.

Arundhati Chavan is president of the PTA United Forum.
She spoke to Labonita Ghosh