Congratulations for your first all-colour issue of EducationWorld. Quite frankly when the first issues of EW were published I had privately predicted its early demise. But I am pleased to note that you are going from strength to strength. Who knows, you might even attain some of your seemingly grandiose targets! Aptly your first colour issue covers the vital implications of the Kapil Sibal Committee’s recommendations. This important report has received negligible coverage in the mainstream press which seems unconcerned about the radical changes being recommended in the vital elementary and secondary school education systems. Although Sibal, who as you have repeatedly stressed in your cover feature, is a legal heavyweight in his own right, is of the opinion that the Supreme Court’s judgement in Inamdar’s Case which upheld the right of unaided professional college managements to regulate the admission and fee structures of their institutions, is not applicable to schools and colleges, I beg to differ. The SC judgement is applicable to all education institutions. Mr. Sibal is living in a dream world if he believes that the highest court will permit state and municipal governments to appropriate a 25 percent quota in privately promoted schools. Instead he should advise the state and local governments to informally negotiate with private schools at the local level. As you have rightly argued the prime duty of government is to upgrade its own 900,000 plus primary and secondary schools, not to grab quotas in private schools promoted with standards and objectives which are personal to their promoters. Rakesh Shukla Delhi Also read: Kapil Sibal’s ambitious education reforms agenda All colour surprise I was pleasantly surprised when I saw the latest issue of EducationWorld. The magazine looks fantastic. I’d like to congratulate you on going full colour; the magazine is now comparable with any other mainstream publication. Upto now though your content was well researched and presented, the magazine lacked allure because the printing was in two colour and had only black and white photographs. Now with your full colour printing format, quality content, readable layout, it is only a matter of time before EW gives mainstream magazines like India Today, Outlook, etc a run for their money. Keep up the good work and all the best. Sudarshan Shetty Mangalore Rustom Irani Foundation awards I would like to introduce myself as the history teacher from St. Joseph’s Boys School Bangalore who was a finalist in your TCS-EducationWorld annual awards earlier this year (EW June). The purpose of this letter is to share with you my experiences of another teacher awards competition which concluded in early September. The Rustom Irani Foundation, Mumbai conducted a nationwide contest titled “Unsung Heroes… No Longer” to honour teachers across the country. There were regional contests in six cities. The first two winners from each city were invited to Mumbai for the final round of interviews. Having won the Bangalore round, I participated in the finals and made it to the top five. But it was not so much the contest itself, but the commendably philanthropic attitude of the Rustom…
