To ask for grants, schools ring it on

To make the government heed their demands of grants, hike in teachers' remuneration etc, schools across the state will ring their bells for a minute on July 25
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As the clock strikes 11 on July 25, unaided schools across the state will be heard going up in a peal of bells for 60 seconds, in a synchronised effort to make the government heed their demands.


The bell ringing campaign's participants say their aim is
to awaken the government to the long-standing needs
of private schools

The bell ringing campaign, as it is called by teachers, is to awaken the government to their urgent needs, which include: increasing the pay scale of Shikshan Sevaks - temporary teachers hired by the government, giving non-salary grants to private schools, and exempting them from commercial rates of electricity bills and so on.

Kapil Patil, MLC from the Mumbai teachers' constituency, initiated the campaign. "It is a sort of Satyagraha. Like our grandparents used to ring temple bells to be heard before God, we are trying to ring the bell to wake the government up to our demands," he said.

It was conceived in a joint meeting of the heads of educational institutions, Headmasters' Association and the representatives of teachers held this week.

Presided by Gregory Lobo, president and secretary of Archdiocesan Board Education, it was decided in the meeting that members of the organisation would meet the Chief Minister to discuss the issue.

Lobo said, "The campaign has our support. Our schools will ring the bell at 11 am as a form of protest, as we have suffered a lot because of the unmet demands. If these demands are not fulfilled, we might decide to close the schools for a day."

Manzoor Ahmed, president, Headmasters' Association, and principal of Anjuman Khairul Islam Boy's School in Ghatkopar, said, "We are supporting this campaign and will ring the bell for a minute at 11 am on July 25. We are fed up of the government's response to us.
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They are not giving us non-salary grants. The Shikshan Sevaks' salary is so less that they are quitting, saying that they are unable to make ends meet." He added, "This will not affect the classes."