Issues like exorbitant fees charged by private schools and a demand to regulate them, illegal sand mining in various parts of the country thereby posing threat to environment and lack of facilities like hearse and ambulance to ferry the dead from the hospital saw the members from nearly all political parties expressing concern in the Rajya Sabha on Friday.
Raising the fees issue, Shwait Malik(BJP) demanded that such schools should be regulated to provide succor to hapless parents. He said education had now become like shops with industrialists and traders opening educational institutions and exploit through various charges like building fund and force the parents to buy books and uniform from the school.
Associating himself with his assertion, Surendra Singh Nagar (SP) said schools have seen 150 per cent rise in fee in the last 10-15 years. In 2018, Uttar Pradesh made a law to control private schools but it has not been implemented, he said. The Centre should frame a law to end exploitation of parents and students by private schools, he added and various other members cutting across lines agreed with his contention.
Highlighting the hazards caused by illegal mining in many parts of the country, Kumari Selja (Congress) said natural resources were destroyed and cited instances in Haryana. She alleged illegal mining was taking place with connivance of political parties and administration.
Echoing similar sentiments, Vikas Mahatame (BJP) said after China, India is the biggest consumer of sand for construction. As the demand and supply gap is growing, sand mafia was exploiting the situation. He also said instances of officers and locals getting murdered and assaulted after objecting to illegal mining also came to notice. The entire House associated with the issue.
Drawing the attention to the plight of poor in ferrying the bodies of their relative from hospital, Javed Ali Khan (SP) said several instances came to light where due to lack of transport, bodies were taken on cycle carriers, motorcycles and in one case in Odisha a man carried the body on his head.
Khan demanded that it should be made mandatory for all private hospitals to have some vehicles earmarked for ferrying bodies and sought same systems in the Government hospitals. Almost the entire house agreed with Khan who lauded the Odisha Government decision to provide free facilities to take the bodies from hospitals to homes.
Among other matters, DP Vats (BJP) demanded that a heroes’ gallery showing pictures of Defence personnel who have sacrificed their lives for the country be set up at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU). He said elite institutions of armed forces like National Defence Academy (NDA) and Army Cadet College are affiliated with the JNU. He said students passing from those institutes simultaneously become alumni of JNU.
RK Sinha (BJP) said Bhojpuri language should be included in the Eight Schedule of the Constitution. He said the language is spoken in over two dozen countries besides by 20 crore people in India. Vaiko (MDMK) opposed the drilling for hydrocarbons permitted in Tamil Nadu, saying the “most disastrous and dangerous” activity will destroy fertile land in the Cauvery delta. Dola Sen (TMC) opposed corporatisation of Indian Ordinance Factories saying it will eventually lead to privatisation.