THANK YOU FOR the brilliant cover story ˜India™s liberal arts renaissance™ (EW January). You have perceptively linked the failure of India™s socio-economic development effort to the continuous neglect of liberal arts education. Over the past six decades since independence, government and private initiatives have focused disproportionately on science, technology and career-oriented education, ignoring the study of the humanities and liberal arts. The current climate of religious intolerance and crude public discourse are outcomes of neglecting the study of history, sociology and the social sciences. Congratulations to the founders of Ashoka University for breaking away from the mainstream and giving India its first liberal arts-focused university. I hope their initiative will inspire many more education entrepreneurs to do the same. Aarti Roy Bangalore Commendable criticism THE 2014 EDUCATION retrospective is well-written (Special report ˜2014: Return of Hindutva fear in academia™, EW January). After ten years of a corrupt and ineffective Congress-led UPA government, most citizens welcomed the victory of the BJP which promised development for all and doubling of education expenditure to 6 percent of GDP. But to the misfortune of India™s children and youth, the new BJP government is preoccupied with forwarding the RSS™ hindutva agenda in Indian education. Instead of drawing up a roadmap to upgrade infrastructure in government schools, improving learning outcomes, recruiting trained teachers and reforming curriculums, the Union HRD ministry is busy issuing diktats to celebrate Sanskrit Week and Good Governance Day in schools and colleges. Thumbs up to EducationWorld for taking the lead in exposing the BJP government for losing sight of the real issues of Indian education. Consistent media and public scrutiny is needed to force the HRD ministry to do a mid-course correction. Vinay Sharma Mumbai Worst crimes RE YOUR EDITORIAL ˜Checking child sexual abuse pandemic™ (EW December), the worst crime against children is to exploit them sexually. Another glaring violation of children™s rights is child labour. Even though it™s banned in India, children are routinely employed as domestic help in many Indian households. Children who should be in school and learning, are made to work in homes, shops and industrial establishments. It™s unfortunate and shameful that Indian society and its citizens don™t care for the welfare of children ” the country™s future. Mahesh Kapasi Delhi Great honour IT™S A MATTER OF honour and pride for The Jain International School (TJIS), Kanpur, to be ranked #1 in Uttar Pradesh and Kanpur in the category of day-cum-boarding schools in the EW India School Rankings 2014 (EW September). On behalf of the entire TJIS family, I extend my heartiest appreciation for acknowledging and acclaiming our achievements and potential. I assure you we will continuously endeavour to serve society and improve ourselves. Ira Bhat Principal, The Jain International School, Kanpur Ranking confusion THANK YOU FOR publishing a very detailed analysis of the CISCE and CBSE class X/XII results together with the EW India School Rankings 2014 (EW September). We are very proud that New Horizon School, Bangalore is ranked #1 all-India in the class X ICSE…
