keralamonitor.com April 2, 2002.

Private Promoter not keen to run a community school

Indian School Board Chairman turn around to support private school in Seeb.

Fact finding committee met only private school lobby!

The fate of the proposed new school in Seeb, Oman is to be decided by three of the richest Indians in the Gulf. The two member fact finding committee from New Delhi which visited the Sultanate in connection with the school issue has apparently mandated the final decision regarding setting up a school in Seeb to a three member committee consisting of two top Indian business barons and a senior executive who has apparently ditched even the school patron the Indian Ambassador on the private-public dispute. The school is coming up in an area inhabited by the commonest of common Indians, but the mission members have not met even a single ordinary parent from the locality!

Even though the new chairman of Indian School board has been given a berth in the school board of directors by the school patron, believing his philosphical sermons about the common man's need for quality education at affordable cost, all of a sudden he has sided with the private school lobby for unknown reasons. "Till the day the fact finding committee landed in Muscat, the school board chairman was in favour of a community school in Seeb. However, when the team met the school board chairman, he had a total volta face and supported setting up a private school!" say informed sources. Two other members of the Indian school board have the same approach.

According to one source, the fact finding committee leader Mr.Abhayankar was behaving as if he has decided things in advance and the Indian Ambassador is only a "facilitator" (of corruption from New Delhi?). Being part of a bureaucracy in New Delhi that has been tolerating corruption and malpractice in various Indian Schools in the Gulf including Oman, the senior bureaucrat apparently wanted to silence the Indian Ambassador in Muscat K.M.Meena, who has become a thorn in the flesh of many "prominent" Indian businessmen. Leave the rude manner in which the delegation members treated the senior most Indian Embassy staff. A Muscat based Indian journalist, who went to interview Mr.Abhayankar about the school issue, was also treated very rudely by the First Secretary, East of the Ministry of External Affairs.

According to insiders, the plan to call a fact finding mission was part of the larger conspiracy to reverse or arrest the Indian School reforms ( including a reduction in fees, that cost dearly to school managements) transferring K.M.Meena, the Indian Ambassador to a new unimportant destination and appointing a pro-business ambassador, who will not create any problems for the schools. People say money power of the Indian business community in the Gulf is so tempting that even the senior diplomats and Foreign Minister will not consider public interest in such matters. "A reduction of fees by RO 3 per month in a school of 3,500 students would reduce the profit of private managements by RO 10,500 per month and nearly RO 1,50000 per year. When converted into Indian Rupees, this amount would not fit in two big suitcases! Add all other 13 Indian schools and one can imagine the amount of hard currency involved in Indian school matters.

Another interesting point is that the announcement made by three schools to reduce tuition/other fees has nothing to do with the Indian School Board. "The school board which came to power in October 2002 was not doing anything to reduce school fees reduction. The current decision to reduce school fees is a result of the direct intervention of the Indian Ambassador, with individual school managements. Without his interference, the schools would not have announced even a fee reduction of 100 baizes," said sources. Thanks to the commission, even one of the schools that had plans of fee reduction started renegotiated the total amount of reduction.!