Tag: Islamic Education In Madrassas

Islamic educational

Survey Of UP Madrassas Begins In Kanpur

By LokMarg

In light of the Uttar Pradesh government’s order, the survey of Islamic educational institutions, or Madrassas has started in Kanpur.

According to the government order, the survey will be on the basis of 12 aspects. The teams of officials for the Madrassa survey have been constituted by District Magistrate (DM) as per government order.

“The survey of Madrassas has started. We are checking certain points such as land records, syllabus, cleanliness, housing facilities etc. Some Madrassas have been identified to be checked. There are 25 Madrassas in the city area. The rest are the in surrounding villages,” said Sub Divisional Magistrate Himanshu Nagpal.

Earlier this month, the Uttar Pradesh government started the process of conducting a survey of the Islamic education institutions.

Earlier, the UP government declared to conduct a survey in unrecognised madrassas to ascertain information on the number of students, teachers, curriculum and affiliation with any non-government organisation.

The survey of unrecognized Madrassas is conducted to ensure the basic facilities of the students of Madrassas.

Danish Azad Ansari, Minister of State for Minority Welfare, Muslim Waqf and Waqf Department said that the order also holds to give maternity leave and child care leave to women employees working in Madrassas in the light of the rules applicable in the Department of Secondary Education and Basic Education.

All the District Magistrates (DMs) in Uttar Pradesh have been issued instructions regarding the survey. The government has also ordered holding a survey of unrecognised Madrassas by October 5. The teams will constitute officials of the Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM), Basic Shiksha Adhikaris (BSA) and District Minority Officers.

Once the survey is conducted it has also been instructed to hand over the report to the Additional District Magistrate (ADM) after which ADM will present the consolidated statements to the District Magistrates (DMs).

Moreover, it has been ordered that in case of a disputed management committee or in case of the death of any employee in an aided Madrassas, a post-facto approval for appointment by the principal Madrassas and District Minority Welfare Officer in the dependent quota of the deceased and the existence of a valid management committee has to be sought.

Meanwhile, a convention of madrassas of Uttar Pradesh was held in Darul Uloom, Deoband on the survey of unrecognized madrassas by the state government on Sunday. The convention was attended by over 250 madrassa representatives.

After the convention, Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind president Maulana Arshad Madani said there is no objection from the madrassas on the issue of the survey of unrecognized madrassas by the state government.

“There is no opposition among us regarding the survey. We have instructed the Ulemas to give correct answers to whatever questions are asked to them and people should cooperate fully in the survey,” Madani said.

He said the madrassas are instructed to keep their rules and accounts correct and conduct audits from time to time.

Madani said that the madrassas will not take help from the government for day-to-day religious affairs adding that the government can help in building schools and colleges.

Madani said if a madrassa is on the land of the government, then the government has the right to demolish it, but “if the madrassa is on its own land, then we are against it.”

He said the convention appealed to all Islamic madrassas to cooperate with the survey team. (ANI)

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Deoband On Survey

To Excel, Madrassas Must Impart Skill Training

By Asad Mirza

Ever since their emergence, the Madrassas in India have persisted with a curriculum that has seen few changes. The fact that literally, lakhs of Muslim children acquire their primary, and perhaps their only formal education, in these Madrassas where only literature and Islamic studies with a cursory knowledge of social sciences thrown in, are taught, should be a matter of concern not only to their parents but also to anybody concerned with education in any manner.

The format of education imparted to the students of Madrassas ought to be modified keeping in view the shifting demands of the job market – a concern that can no longer be under-played.  And this is perfectly possible without an erosion of the cultural and religious identity.

Developing suitable answers for today’s dilemmas requires an examination of the essentials of education. Education involves transference to others, of knowledge and values accumulated by mankind. Even though schools and teachers have been part of the process of education for hundreds or even thousands of years, it is the spirit of enquiry that has enriched mankind with knowledge. We learn through reading, experience by watching others and by observing the world in general.  Inculcating a spirit of scientific enquiry in students will perhaps be the best manner of propelling them on the path of learning.

Even though this may be the general agreement, it is a fact that in this country particularly, whenever an attempt is made to institute any profound change, a resistance begins to act from its very inception. The critics flinch at the vision of a Madrassa system where modern education or skills enhancement would jettison religious knowledge and make education “worldly” and “impersonal”.

It is a matter of satisfaction to note that of late, some Madrassas, have realised the significance of modern education, and have introduced teaching science, English and Computer skills in their curricula. For example the two largest Madrassas in India, Darul Uloom-Deoband and Nadwa-tul Ulema-Lucknow have braced themselves to be the harbinger of change and have introduced English language teaching and computer skills as part of their curriculum. But both have not been able to bring about any noticeable improvement in the quality of education they impart to their students.

It is often argued that if modern education is so sensational, why hasn’t it brought any notable improvement to education in the few Madrassas that have adopted it? In reality, in spite of modern education being imparted, thousands of Madrassas don’t have a well-formulated curriculum, and/or couldn’t implement it even if they wanted to, as they don’t have sufficiently trained and proficient staff.

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It is also a fact that in the earlier years of madrassa education, the founders of Darul Uloom-Deoband, insisted on imparting skills enhancement to their students. Thus enabling them to earn their livelihood and also continue with their religious duties. These skills enhancements included calligraphy, book binding, printing and tailoring. However, over time these components were removed from the madrassa training.

But as it is the wheels of history continue turning round and round, and indeed now-a-days Skills Enhancement has become a buzzword for the whole world not just for madrassa students.

In the given scenario, madrassa authorities could very well take advantage of different skills enhancements programmes run by the GoI, government and private institutions and different universities and colleges throughout the country.

Madrassa authorities across India can collaborate with National Skills Foundation of India, National Skill Development Corporation, NSIC, Delhi Skill & Entrepreneurship University, Jamia Millia Islamia, AMU and Jamia Hamdard University to name a few, to initiate skills enhancement and development programmes for their students.

In addition, madrassas can also collaborate with various NGOs, who have a credible record of delivering Skills Enhancement and personality development courses over the years.

Madrassa students have an edge over students of modern education system, their memorisation capacity is honed so well that this capacity can be utilised to guide them through various skills enhancement courses related to computers and IT, like data analytics and programming. In the past, organisations, which had embarked on this path, report of highly encouraging results.

If the madrassa authorities in collaboration with central bodies like the Ministry of Minority Affairs and Maulana Azad National Foundation carry forward such successful programmes, whose results have been quantified and documented well, then this could augur well both for the country and madrassa. It will also ensure taking the sting out of the critic’s blame that madrassa students are inferior to the students who have pursued courses under the modern education system.