Because many things were set to reopen in Maharashtra at the end of this month, training the Institutes Express Shock that they did not know the government’s discussion about the reopening.
Rajnikant Bondre, president of the training association based in Maharashtra (ACI), said this prolonged closure has resulted in poor performance by state students in competitive exams such as Jee and Neet (awaited results).
In an interview with Toi, Bondre talked about the consequences of government actions.
Quotation …
P.
The government is now pushing forward with improvement of plans.
From school to religious places and soon the cinema will be reopened.
Are you surprised that so far the Institute train doesn’t look for the list? A.
It’s really surprising that we are not even considered in this plan.
As I understand, students who study at Std X-XII can attend school / junior, they can visit restaurants, shops, resorts, trips throughout the country and immediately visit religious places and film space but they cannot attend the training institute.
The problem is that the coaching industry has not been categorized correctly, so no one knows who is responsible for our sector.
P.
Many have a misunderstanding that you are under the PurView of the Ministry of Education.
A.
Not at all.
We are a completely different entity and we have evolved parallelly to the existing education system.
But schools and colleges can only be run by registered trust, and that doesn’t happen with us.
We pay 18% GST, professional taxes, subject to commercial rates for utilities and are not entitled to SOPs.
It’s time for the government to recognize and define the category where we come.
P.
You claim that the performance of Maharashtra students has been affected due to prolonged closure.
A.
It’s a fact.
Two main competitive exams, Jee and Neet, need intense preparation for at least two years.
But the last months before the exam is when students need physical interaction with the teacher.
Most of us call it ‘doubtful cleaning the session’ and this is similar to polishing a product to bring it to the peak.
Academic proficiency is achieved in this one-to-one physical interaction with the teacher, and it can’t happen here.
We are allowed to reopen the bits and pieces but there is a limit on the number of students and such permits do not last long.
P.
Even the school works online, so how can it train the Institute justify the demand for teaching physical classes? A.
Online class fails when compared to physical mode.
Not even close.
To put my points forward, let’s take the example of the US.
This is a country that is 25 years before US technology wise and this online teaching has occurred there for a long time.
So why is the physical and college schools still come out there? Let’s move to this pandemic period.
If the online system is so good, US schools and colleges will be resolved to stay permanently in online mode because they have a long time to experience how it works.
So this is not about the quality of clean connectivity or lack of devices, the point is that children learn best in physical mode.
That online debate versus offline is dead.
Q.
If you reopen, isn’t there a possibility of students who have a virus when they start getting along with each other? A.
There are three different parts for my answer.
The first is that a large number of these students have reached the age of 18 (because they are in STD XII) and have taken at least one dose of vaccine.
The second part is controlling the environment in the training institution is very easy because we have limited students and discipline.
This is a college student who is very aware of the importance of the exam and therefore will always follow the safety guidelines.
Third is that we spend a lot of sanitization and generally go and exceed what the government has commanded.
So, remember all these things, I would say the training class is one of the safest places for students to visit.
Q.
How do you attract the attention of the government now? A.
We work closely with other associations based in Pune and other parts of Maharashtra to have a more coordinated strategy.
We will approach the government to give us a trial and listen to our problems.
We also hope that the media highlights these things so that consciousness is made about how one of the safest places, training institutions is still waiting for the reopening.
‘Competitive performance suffered from locking’
