Sarma said the government has decided to convert them to higher secondary schools because currently there is no independent board to regulate them
Guhwati: The Assam Government has decided to shut down state-run Madrasas and Sanskrit ‘tols’ (centres of learning) and converted them to schools teaching regular courses, Education Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Wednesday.
If religious books are taught with government funds, then the Gita is also supposed to be taught in Sanskrit tols, said Sarma while addressing to media.
The Education Minister said “Teaching Arabic and religious books is not the government’s job. In a secular nation, religious teachings cannot be funded by the government. If religious books are allowed to be taught in state-based madrassas, the Gita, or the Bible, should also be taught with government funding,”.
Himanta Biswa Sarma said, “Since the state is a secular institution, it can’t fund religious teaching.”
He stated that the Assam government has been running madrassas and Sanskrit tols and it is the result of this that today state has nearly 1,200 madrasas and 200 Sanskrit tols.
Sarma said the government has decided to convert them to higher secondary schools because currently there is no independent board to regulate them.
He added “The government based madrassas and Sanskrit tols issue certificates which are equivalent to matriculation (Class 10) and higher secondary (Class 12). As there is no regulatory board to govern them, a lot of wrongdoings take place in issuing these certificates,”.
However, he clarified that this decision will not affect privately run madrassas. “The state government has no issue with the madrassas that are being run by different social organizations and NGOs.
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