If Mamata Banerjee was less than effective in her recent interaction with heads of missionary schools ~ the verbal demarche was reserved for private hospitals ~, the new Bishop of Kolkata has virtually cracked the whip at the threshold. Reverend Probal Dutta’s signal of intent, soon after his “installation”, reinforces his caveat that Principals of schools under the CNI (Church of North India) ought not to function as “CEOs of corporate enterprises”. The school heads never quite anticipated so forthright a presentation in course of the grandstanding at St Paul’s Cathedral. Clearly, he has not put too fine a point on it.

As Bishop of Kolkata, Rev Dutta is at the helm of the governing boards of the respective schools. And Bishop’s House on Jawaharlal Nehru Road is, therefore, the overarching entity. The fact that some of these institutions are among the best in the city has not coloured his remarkably objective assessment. It is their manner of functioning that must now be open to question as perhaps never before. Chiefly, the reforms on the anvil are intended to ensure what the Church calls “transparency” in their operations.

Advertisement

Towards that end, eminent educationists will be inducted into school managing committees. “The world is changing and we cannot lead schools towards excellence unless we induct leading educationists,” was Bishop Dutta’s message at the investiture ceremony. Unmistakable is the decidedly academic underpinning, as against the intrinsically commercial. Ergo, the Church has a pivotal role to play, indeed to fulfil the Benthamite doctrine of the “greatest good of the greatest number” and this almost certainly will call for a review of the fee structure which is exorbitant in many of these schools.

The other imperative is the human factor, verily the certitude of the Right to Education Act that these schools must reserve a quota for “neighbourhood children” and make the fees affordable. Sad to reflect, the provisions have allegedly been flouted in all or nearly most schools under the CNI. Yet another area of concern is the opaque admission process and the dubious practice of entry in lieu of hefty donations. A targeted cleansing operation is bound to make the search of learning an affordable and fruitful endeavour.

Regretfully once more, there is little or no difference between missionary schools and private hospitals in terms of fiscal operations. It would be a grave academic tragedy if learning and admission are reserved only for those who can afford it… in the manner of medical treatment. Bishop Dutta has conveyed a resounding message with the statement that “Schools run by the CNI are not institutions of profit, but centres of social service that should strive to keep corruption at bay”. The fineprint is corruption; the Bishop has hit the bull’s eye and direly needs the support of the schools, the Church, and government.