The Forum Against Commercialisation of Education gets serious about its demands for transparency and justice
The Forum Against Commercialisation of Education gets serious about its demands for transparency and justice
About 23 forums and organisations came out in support of Dr Vivek Korde, President of the Forum Against Commercialisation of Education (FACE), who went on an indefinite hunger strike on Saturday.
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| Dr Vivek Korde, President, FACE, at a press conference to announce his hunger strike at Sarvoday Mandal, Nana Chowk on Saturday. Pic/Suresh KK |
Dr Korde has demanded the enactment of the school fee regulation act with immediate effect, transparency in the school admission process, and a change in the government's definition of Economically Backward Class (EBC) students. The current definition applies to those whose annual family income falls below Rs 15,000, but Dr Korde wants the limit to be extended to Rs 1 lakh.
Prashant Thakur, MLA, Panvel constituency, failed to attend the press conference but lent his support through a live speech that was broadcast on a mobile phone's speaker. Students from the Dadar-based D.Ed College are lending their support by sitting in with him for two days.
Arundhati Chavan, President, PTA United Forum, said, "Hunger strikes are effective in catching the administration's attention. At the least, the government could give a thought to the demands made by FACE."
Dr Avisha Kulkarni, whose daughter was asked to leave a reputed school in the western suburbs for fighting against the fee hike, said, "This is one more step in the fight against commercialisation of education. Our support is with Dr Korde. We will continue the protest and force the government to stop the injustice in education in the state."
To prepare himself for the indefinite hunger strike, Dr Korde has been on a strict diet for the past few weeks. He has been skipping meals to attune his body for the rigours of a hunger strike.
Said Dr Korde, "From the time FACE was established in 2003, we have been writing letters to the education ministers on the fee hike, transparency in pre-primary education and increasing the annual income limit for the EBC. Yet, the department has not even bothered to revert. This has led me to take up an indefinite hunger strike. I continue till I receive assurance (for fulfillment of the demands) from the education department. Even if they ask us for two months' time to work on our demands, we could stop the hunger strike."
FACE had sent a letter about their demands to Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on December 8, with a reminder about the indefinite hunger strike on January 3. "We are expecting to either hear from the education department's representative or to receive a letter from the department in response to our demands," said Dr Korde.
