Free education up to HSC level a basic right

Bangladesh is a small country but has a huge population. Most people here live below the poverty line and cannot, therefore, afford to educate their children. Many poor children either drop out of school just after a few years or simply do not go to schools at all. In this situation, we have too many students to be educated compared to the number of institutions available. Our country needs more schools, colleges and universities for the increasing number of students for the grassroots level. But owing to financial and resource constraints, the government cannot fund the requisite number of educational institutions. At present every educational institution is overcrowded and the classroom size is unusually small. As facilities in these institutions are poor, students do not get standard and quality education. Nowadays, the government should take the responsibility to ensure quality and free education up to higher secondary level. There have always been arguments on how much the government should give its people. Amidst the extremely opposing opinions of socialism and capitalism lies the common agreement that whatever the government thinks about peripheral rights, basic needs of civilians should be catered to. In the present context, education up to the higher secondary level has become a basic, and hence, should be sponsored by the government. However, the cliché, "education is the backbone of the nation" is yet to be realised by many countries of the world. But it is surely understood. Without education, not mere literacy but a knowledgeable understanding of humanity and the universe earned at higher secondary school, the modern man is only set to wither. If examples must be given, any developed nation may be randomly picked, because national development has always been achieved and sustained by the development of nationals. Singapore, for examples, thrives on its high and educational system despite being naturally destitute with little land, agricultural or mineral resources. An uneducated citizen, however biologically aged he is, is defenceless against the perils of modern global economy. In sum, education, at least up to the higher secondary level, is very much a basic necessity of a citizen, and like food, shelter, security, healthcare, it should be provided and guaranteed by the government. The writer is the Librarian at BIFT, and can be reached at email: atik@bift.info