Progressive Democratic Students’ Union (PDSU)

Programme

World history is full of examples of how students have, from time to time, come for the freedom of their country and against exploitation and oppression. Virtually all great social upsurges in history are marked by the active participation of students. Students have been clearly aware that their education and future are linked with that of their country and their and   their social system, and in fact are determined by the latter.

In India, thousands of students left their homes and studies and threw themselves into the anti-colonial struggles against the British. Our students have supported and participated in struggles of workers, peasants and common masses including the heroic Telanagana peasant armed struggle. The great Naxalbari peasant armed struggle enthused a large number of students who left their all to organize the peasants and other toiling sections in revolutionary movements. Students have participated in mass movements against price rise, against fare hikes and other general struggles of the people. Besides fighting on the issues directly affecting them, students came out in large numbers in agitations against corruption. Students have also been the spearhead of the various movements of the Progressive Democratic Students’ Union dedicate us to building a patriotic, progressive and democratic student movement in India. We will also strive to link our movement to the broader struggles of our people for genuine freedom, democracy and well being

Our Education System: A Part of Our Social System

Students in India go through an education system which is not designed to impart proper education to the vast masses of students. It is a dual system, the relatively expensive education catering to a very small section of students who come from the elite section of Indian society and can pay for their education. The rulers of India are not bothered about the quality of education available for the vast masses of students. Rather they aim to perpetuate slavish mentality and back ward thinking among the students, so that their policies should not be questioned.

Earlier, when the British ruled India, they had consciously established a colonial education system. In it Indians were trained to be ‘babus’ or cogs in the British Govt. machinery. The same was used to oppress and exploit our country and people. Thus this education was designed to make the students intellectual slaves of the values and culture of British rulers in the interest of perpetuating British rule over India.

The education system has been one of the arenas of struggle between the value system and culture promoted by the colonial masters and the patriotic forces. On one side stood the colonialists and their Indian dalals, the big capitalists and big landlords. On the other side were the patriotic forces of India, who laid stress on the culture of the working masses- the workers, the peasantry and the middle classes. The colonial education promoted a value system which created aspirations for a better personal life at all costs without bothering about the social good. It encouraged subservience before authority, awe of the colonialists and ‘gratitude’ to them for all the ‘benefits’ they were giving the country. This, while in reality they enslaved our people, looted our rich natural and human resources and exploited our masses.

The patriotic people propagated and fought for independence, for an Indian society where the vast masses could live with dignity, have right to education, to equality of opportunity, to employment, and would be participants and decision makers in the development of their country, and in its economic and scientific development.

Though the angry rising tides of the struggles of Indian people drove the British out of India, power passed into the hands of the Indian ruling classes, who continued the anti-people policies of the British. They were the wolves in Indian skin. They perpetuated a system designed for the welfare of tiny upper strata of society and based on the loot of the vast masses.  Thus the colonial education system was preserved intact with some cosmetic changes. The patriotic pro-people forces were suppressed by brute force by these new rulers as had been the case in British times. However, the struggles, including that of progressive and democratic students have continued.

The hope of the vast masses that with the going of the British there would be economic development for the people, jobs for all, education to children according to their potential, all would get the fruits of labour- all these came to naught. Irrespective of which govt. has been in power, the ruling sections of India have served the interests of imperialist forces, not the people. They have fed themselves on commissions from the imperialists and allowed them to loot our country. Our science, economy, technology has all been kept tied to theirs as their satellites, so as to advance their interests and bolster their super profits.

In addition, the vast masses of the student community live in villages of India, or are children of the urban working masses. The widespread poverty in the country dooms the lives of so many children, who are forced to be part of the work force of the household.  Many others work in family farms. Girls must stay at home do domestic chores and look after younger brothers and sisters so that the mother can go to work.

The terrible poverty of Indian villages is due to semi-feudal land relations and can only be changed by land reforms. This would allow economic development by breaking the basis of stranglehold of feudal exploitation in India. Without it, the students and the potential from a vast section of India cannot be provided equal opportunity of education, or even, in mast cases, access to any education at all.

Main Features of Our Education System

Thus our education system continues to be dual and unscientific and captive of colonial values. While the progressive and democratic student movement has been fighting for a scientific education policy and abolishing of dual education system, the rulers are perpetuating their old system. Rather than encouraging a materialist study of world history and Indian history, or orienting students to tackle the needs of India for economic and technological self sufficiency or for taking science to people, it encourages servility for Imperialist literature, science, arts and techniques.

The medium of instruction is not the mother tongue, and English is the medium of instruction in elitist institutions. Those who study in their mother tongue are considered second rate and are looked down upon. Due to this the real heritage of the vast masses of India lies neglected and the contribution of the masses to India’s development cannot be taken. The teaching of History is done in a distorted and communalized fashion. The role of Congress in the anti-British movement is glorified and exaggerated beyond proportion. The role of Hindu kings in Indian history is presented in a distorted manner and thus does saffronization of education; all these are being further exacerbated.

Dual Education Policy

The education system stands firmly based on a dual policy. There is a separate, elitist, competitive education available for upper classes that can pay for the same. The children of the vast masses go through an apology of an education. For them there are no classrooms, no books, no libraries, no blackboards and sometimes no teachers and no building even. This is true of capital city itself, let alone any obscure corner of India.

The examination system is unscientific, based on cramming rather than any assessment of knowledge, imagination and capability of a student. Rather our education system suffocates the very traits of creativity and scientific, rational outlook, which an education system should ideally nourish.

Research students and students pursuing higher education go through stereotyped syllabi unsuited to the challenges faced by our people, which make them mental slaves of an academic orientation towards the needs of imperialism. Research students are exploitation which comes into the open time and again through extreme steps like suicide of the victims.

Corruption and bribery, and sky rocketing fees ravage the education system. This is especially so for studies in the elitist ‘public’ ravage school and colleges. Capitation fee system is a bane of our system, and directly allows students too completely and openly sideline merit if they are able to pay huge sums of money. Student organizations catering to upper castes’ interests vociferously fight against caste based reservations as being anti-merit especially in professional courses. But they turn a blind eye to the ‘management seats of capitation fee colleges where ‘money-based’ reservation is openly operating. The   new education policy of 1986 institutionalized the dual policy further through the introduction of ‘Navodaya schools’ meant for the rural rich. This policy of two kinds of education was offered a theoretical basis of a sensible deployment of scarce funding. The budget allocated for education is a mere pittance and is being further decreased. 90% of this budget actually goes to fund the payment of salaries to teaching staff. Even infrastructural costs are now being left to be met through high tuition fees extracted from students.

Education has no relation to employment Youth roam in the streets in frustration after getting not just one, but several degrees. Job oriented courses charge high fees. Every year sees a further rise in the number of educated unemployed, and even professional and technical students face job crisis. The Govt. does not use this trained force for building up the economy, but seeks to dissipate it through various gimmicks like changing schooling years, etc. but to little effect. Now it is simply pushing out the bulk of students from mainstream educational opportunities to replace ‘good quality’ education to those who can pay high fees. Hundreds of scientists and other professionals are forced to migrate abroad to look for jobs. Medical and drug research is tailored to multinationals’ interests and our laboratories work as their appendages.

Impact of WTO

Under the new order imposed by WTO with the slogans of globalization, privatization and liberalization, MNCization of third world economies is being implemented. Under this world order, the govts. of the centre and states have made ‘privatization’ their catchword since 1991 through the ‘New Economic Policies. In education, there is firstly an intensive drive to privatize all higher education. All new courses being started in UGC affiliated colleges and universities charge very high fees. Tuition fees are being raised in colleges under one pretext or another. Entire universities are being set up whose affiliated colleges are totally privately owned (e.g., Indraprastha University in Delhi). In the field of scientific education, in the name of making research ‘financially viable’, there is the great emphasis on ‘linking science with industry ‘. MNCs are already acknowledged entities within the campuses of professional colleges.

Secondly, there is an enormous emphasis from the World Bank downward on ‘primary education’. The earlier stress of New Education Policy (1986) was on ‘non-formal’ education. Now funds are being poured into the country directly by the World Bank for the purpose of universalization of primary education. Its ideological back up is being provided by economists blessed with acknowledgments from imperialist sponsored institutions. The real aim is to equip people with basic education required for them to be useful to MNCs who are shifting their basic manufacturing processes to the third world to avail of cheap labour power. A similar phenomenon occurred in South-East Asian countries.

Thirdly, since SC/OBC reservations are not being extended to privatized institutions, the whole concept of reservation in education for deprived castes is coming to naught. Educational opportunities for common people (already economically backward), especially the socially backward, is being further minimized.

Fourthly, the section likely to be hit most hard by this privatization drive is the girl students. Hardly any common family will be willing to pay a ‘double dowry’ for the daughter- first for her studies and then for her marriage.

Widespread propaganda enshrining superstitions, myths, and irrational attitudes are being pushed through teaching material, through media and English newspapers and through films. On the other band there is positive promotion of decadent imperialist culture, their values, and their vulgar practices.

Caste oppression is a scourge of Indian society and vast sections of our people, who are mostly part of the peasant and working masses, remain victims of severe social exploitation. A large mass of India’s student community- or at least potential students -face this reality. Rulers in India have kept all laws pertaining to land reforms-which could provide the base to actually change the situation-firmly restricted to law books and pronouncements. Some relief in the form of reservations for education at various levels has been available to them. Even these are sought to be squashed or subverted through local policies, through court cases, through privatization and by free ploy of biases. All these, of course, are done in the name of ‘merit’, ‘equality’, ‘social good’ and ‘national prestige and interest’.

Even when these students get admission, there is open display of casteism by teachers, administrative bodies, and even co-students. These biases play an important role especially in technical and professional courses. Even hostels, class rooms, dining halls are pray to segregationist policies. Students, themselves tend to segregate on caste lines as a result of this backward environment in campuses.

Education and Girl Students

Women in India face severe exploitation and oppression. They are kept devoid of education, freedom and even property rights. Within the family, their education is considered to be of secondary importance. The percentage of girl dropouts is high at all levels of education. Traditions, religious and cultural practices contribute to their chains- all of which are being intensified by the Hindutva drive mentioned earlier.

Girl students in schools and colleges remain prey to gender harassment both from goonda elements among students and even from teachers. The promotion of imperialist culture has further abetted in deterioration of their freedom and their susceptibility to such oppression. In colleges, the so called student leaders enjoying official patronage contribute to their harassment. Eve teasing in communities special targets of organized goondaism along caste lines in many parts of India. However no section is spared.

The education system does not instill girl students with confidence in their own capabilities, nor encourage them to stand up for gender equality, for freedom from exploitation or even against backward social practices. Rather it teaches them the virtues of o submissiveness, of docility and of accepting ritualistic chains. A small elitist section becomes worshipper of imperialist culture and its victims too, as this culture promotes the use of women as commodities. Thus the education system contributes to leaving untapped the energies and creativity of half our population, besides trying to maintain it as a reservoir of backwardness. It does not even equip women students to fight even for their own safety within campuses.

It is an important aspect that the goondaism and hooliganism prevalint in student organizations enjoying official patronage repels women students from widely enrolling in student politics and fighting even against hooliganism and eve teasing.

Revolutionary Change: A Must for a Pro-people, Scientific Education System

Just as all just struggles of students for their democratic and progressive demands face oppression of authorities and the state in the form of stay orders, police cases,  lathicharge, etc., state in the meted out to other sections of struggling people too. Citizens belonging to religious minorities are oppressed and suppressed, and are frequent victims of communal riots especially state executed communal violence. The new wave of saffronization is also targeting their special institutions of learning, and they are being made to feel like second class citizens of the country. Communal outlook is actively fanned by the state through state media, through ritualistic practices, etc.

India is a multinational country, but people of several nationalities are oppressed and repressed. Their language and culture are not allowed free development; development of their literature is not encouraged; rather imperialist culture is given all encouragement. Nationality struggles are crushed under the boot of the military and even their democratic struggles are given the label of anti-national movements. Actually it is the sum total of all these cultures and languages that creates India’ rich diversity and its cultural heritage.

Movements of people fighting for a separate state within India, like Uttarakhand and Jharkhand have seen similar repression from the state. Students of these areas have played significant roles in these struggles. Thus it is abundantly clear that the education system -which actually denies right to education to a vast majority -is a part and parcel of our anti people social system. The ruling classes of India are maintaining this system and it should be quite clear to us that a part cannot be corrected in essence without correcting the whole. That is why the ‘changes’ and ‘revolutions’ in education system brought about by various Govts. only reinforce the dual education policy. This is true of Rajiv Gandhi’s ‘New’ Education Policy (1986) , of BJP’s ‘Hinduization and nationalization’ of education, of the ‘charvaha’ schools set up by Laloo Govt. in Bihar in the name of ‘equal’ opportunities while allowing elitist institutions to flourish in the state, and also of the current ; globalization’ drive.

It is amply clear that in order to fight for a democratic, pro-people and scientific education system; we will have to ally ourselves with the broader fight for a pro-people social system. In this struggle, we and the vast Indian masses are allies, because such an education system will depend on a revolutionary reorganization of India. The Indian people must defeat Imperialism, Feudalism and their servitors, i.e., they must complete the task of New Democratic Revolution. Thus we must build a progressive, democratic student movement in India, which is closely linked to the struggles for a revolutionary change in India.

Other Student Organizations

If the vast masses of students are made conscious of their social role and their strength, a powerful student movement will definitely question the status quo with all its corruption, nepotism, injustice and exploitation of the country and its people. All attempts are, there fore, made to deflect the student movements into the blind streets of casteism and communalism, pseudo-nationalism, etc. and also to rob them of democratic rights.

There are several all India student organizations, most of them patronized by ruling class political parties. The ABVP and NSUI are open centers of goondaism and money power, operate on state patronage, and do not even attempt to build student movements of any democratic demands. Students are organized in support of lumpen politics and rather the democratic student movement is sought to be weakened. They openly defend pro-imperialist policies and pseudo-nationalism NSUI is affiliated to the Congress (1) with all its anti-people policies. ABVP’s patriotism is restricted to a Hindu India and the saffronization and communalization of education in the country (together with a tacit support to privatization and commercialization of education).

The AISF and the SFI operate in the name of ‘left’, resorting to rhetoric and slogans, and thus attempt to misuse the prestige in common people’s minds for communist organizations and the ideology as such. In reality they restrain and restrict student struggles to local issues or to sine reforms, and do not build wide movements on progressive demands nor link the struggle with general revolutionary movements in society. They are also breeding grounds for goondaism especially in states where the political parties linked to them are ruling, and there they are die hard maintainers of status quo. Their anti-communalism is not linked to opposition to imperialism. The AISA is the newest organization to jump into their bandwagon. In toto, all these are a source of convincing students of the viability of the current system albeit with some reforms. AISA also does not mind using caste and communal division of their immediate gains. Their energies are mostly directed at projecting themselves as better reformist organizations then SFI and AISF.

In contrast PDSU clearly stands for building a democratic and progressive movement of students in India. In the aftermath of the Armed Peasant Uprising in Naxalbari, the revolutionary students in Andhra Pradesh separated from the AISF and the SFI and dedicated themselves to the task of building a genuine students’ movement. Taking birth in Osmania University Campus, and seeing its leader Com. George Reddy brutally martyred by RSS goons on the campus under the eyes of the police, the founding conference of PDSU was held in 1974. Since then it has steadily worked among student masses and has given several martyrdom in its struggle to build the movement. PDSU has sought to combine the mass struggles of the students on other demands with their mobilization for revolutionary reorganization of society. PDSU has encouraged students to go to villages and bustees and integrate themselves with the basic masses.

PDSU has waged a relentless struggle against reformism of all hues and anarchism and has laid emphasis on building and functioning the student organization on democratic lines. While building struggles on the immediate problems, it has not succumbed to lasing sight of long term goals for the immediate gains. PDSU has steadily spread to a number of states.

There are other revolutionary student organizations working in India. Some of them like AIRSF underestimate the importance of organizing student movements on students’ demands and adopt sectarian approach in forging unity of the student masses in struggle. They do not take into account the consciousness or preparedness of the student masses while giving their calls. They do not build or function student organization on democratic lines.

Organizations of students along nationality lines exist especially in those areas where nationality struggles are facing brutal repression, e.g., organizations of Kashmiri students, North East student organizations etc. They have played significant roles in organizing students for struggle in their own states. In addition organizations of students along caste or religious lines often arise spontaneously in institutions where caste intimidation or communal attitudes exist. PSDU must encourage all such organizations to align with the progressive student movement.

Recognizing that while it is necessary to fight on immediate demands of students, to beat back fresh onslaught on educational opportunities under WTO and on scientific attitudes under saffronization, real sustained change is possible only with a revolutionary overthrow of the anti-people social system, PDSU calls on students to join in to build struggles

1. To free India from the jaws of imperialism, feudalism and their servitors.

2. For a pro-people, scientific and progressive education system.

3. Against dual education policy, for compulsory closure of elitist schools and colleges and all education through state owned institutions.

4.  Against commercialization, privatization and communalization of education.

5. Oppose communalization of history and for a materialistic study of world history and Indian history.

6.  For raising the education budget to a minimum of 10% and for its proper utilization.

7. Free education for all and linkage of education with jobs. Provide jobs for all.

8. Stop repression on democratic student movements. Stop attacks on rights of common people, especially student masses.

9. Struggle against gender oppression and exploitation of women.

10. Against Caste oppression and division. Support to reservation for weaker sections as a democratic demand.

11. For communal amity, and for rights to all nationalities. Fight against communalism, especially majority communalism and fundamentalism.

12. Against language oppression, and for right to education in mother tongue.

13. Against superstitions, rituals, revivalism, and against cultural degradation. Against aping of imperialist cultural and for development of a progressive, pro-people culture.

We, the members of PDSU, vow to build struggles on the above demands and to follow in the heroic footsteps of our martyrs and all martyrs of democratic students’ struggles. For us society is primary, the individual is secondary.

We vow to mobilize the students to struggle for their rights and to integrate with the basic masses. It is clear that the above demands can be achieved only through new democratic transformation of the society.

We pledge to join hands with all like minded forces and organizations in pursuit of the above mentioned aims and objectives.