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India is poised at a very critical point in time and history, when we need to analyse whether we are moving in the right direction, and if not, why not. There is far too much moral and ethical decay in our society and even though the world is gradually emerging from the recent economic turmoil, globally people are unhappier than before.

"A great school will educate its students not merely to be personally successful but also to use their gifts to build communities and enhance the common good to levels beyond our dreams."— H.H. Agha Khan

The Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 (aka RTE Act) which was unanimously passed by Parliament in August last year and became operational on April 1, has aroused strong passions within Indian academia and especially within India's estimated 100,000 private schools.

This Teachers Day (September 5), I was reflecting on what it means to be a teacher, and wondered if I could distil the essence of the profession into a single expression. Suddenly the word locksmith emerged. Within moments, my mind was inundated with similarities between teachers and key masters.