Happy news

After all,education is the one great leveller,and the only route through which the inequality of past decades can be undone. The relative communal peace of recent years and the options opened up by the market economy have meant that Muslims refuse to have someone else pre-determine their needs,or slot them as being solely driven by religious identity. Once,the familiarity of traditional livelihoods or the experience of exclusion from the job market may have led many to place a lower value on education. Now,everyone wants the same ladders of opportunity. Parties with a Muslim base,as well as community foundations,recognise this need,and have invested in educational institutions.

However,the transformation needs to run much deeper,and start lower down. Primary school enrollment and attendance must be strengthened and scholarships extended. Policy should focus on the structures of disadvantage,like class and regional location,or gender. For instance,many Muslim women may be badly off not simply because of religious conservatism but because they are poor,female,and Muslim. The UP governments recent establishment of scholarships for Muslim girls is a way of clearing up a system so intimidatingly stacked against them. Any political intervention or policy move that advances educational inclusion must be applauded. Only then can the happy story at the IITs be deepened.