From Religious to Secular Education: How Kerala Muslims Adopted Modern Education - Part 2
By Grace Mubashir, New Age Islam
20 June 2023
Contemporary Developments
On the basis of the realization that the
social progress of the nation is possible through the education of all the
citizens of every community, the constitutional architects and the state
builders gave great importance to education. Primary education is a fundamental
right of an Indian citizen. It is backed by the Constitution. According to a
Supreme Court judgment in 1993, education has been defined as a means of
improving the life of a citizen. Then in 2002, the 86th constitutional
amendment added in Article 21 that it is the responsibility of the government
to provide free and compulsory primary education to the citizens of India. Then
the Education Act came into force on 1st April 2010. The aim of the Education
Act is to provide free and compulsory education for students between the ages
of 6 and 14 years. The New Education Policy 2020 envisages tremendous changes
in the entire field.
The Muslim community ranks first among the
minorities that suffer educational discrimination. The Sachar Committee's
observation that Muslims are a backward community in all fields is noteworthy.
Statistics show that Muslims are far behind in terms of education compared to
other communities. Backwardness in the field of education creates a negative
impact in their social, political, economic and cultural spheres in no small
measure.
According to the 2001 census, the total
population of Kerala is 31.84 million. The population consists of 56.2
percentage Hindus, 24.7 percentage Muslims, 19.02 percentage Christians, 2762
Sikhs, 2027 Buddhists, 4528 Jains and 27339 others. According to the Central
Government and other commissions, Muslims will be included in the minority
category. Christians are at the forefront of education. The second place
belongs to the leading Hindu group which includes Brahmins and Nayars. After
these two groups are the Ezhavs and Muslims.
Primary Education and Kerala Muslims
Compared to the Hindu-Christian communities
of Kerala, Muslims have not been able to achieve educational excellence
commensurate with the total population of Muslims. This fact can be seen if we
look at the educational status of Muslims after independence. The Kumaran
Pillai Commission of 1964-65 concluded that school dropout was a common trend.
Muslim students were at the forefront of dropouts. At that time, 829 Muslims,
707 Ezhava students and 703 Latino Catholic students dropped out of school. In
1931 the total number of primary schools was 1479 and the number of students
was 1,04,000. Among these students, the presence of Muslims was less than four
percentage. Only 47 percentage of the Muslim population in the 1960s reached
schools.
In 1972, the dropout of Muslim students was
more universal than that of other communities. During 89 and 90 the total
number of students was 6.51 lakh. Of this, 27.60 percentage of the Muslim
population attended Lower Primary Schools. At the same level, 27.78 percentage
Muslims attended Upper Primary Schools. The Muslim population at that time was
24.7 percentage of the total population. At the level these are 84.8
percentage, 78.0 percentage and 91.2 percentage respectively.
Let us look at the number of students who
completed primary education in different years.1 In 1943, 20 percentage of the
Muslim population completed LP level, while Scheduled Castes completed 13.9
percentage and Others 42.6 percentage. In 1971 these were 51.4 percentage, 50.2
percentage and 77 percentage respectively. In 1986, it was 79.6 percentage,
75.4 percentage and 91.4 percentage. In 1991, it was 89.3 percentage, 82.3
percentage, and 94.4 percentage. In 2001, these were 97.0, 93.1, and 97.4
percentage, respectively, with a slight increase. A similar pattern is observed
in the case of those who have completed UP level education.
In terms of primary education, Muslims lag
behind other communities in terms of school attendance and completion in
proportion to the population. A similar situation is experienced by the
community in terms of the number of primary educational institutions. Apart
from government institutions, there are 6335 private primary educational
institutions. Of these, the Christian community has 2585. There are 2602
institutions under Hindu management. But the Muslim community is far behind in
terms of primary education institutions. Only 1148 of them comes under Muslim
management.
According to the Sachar Committee report,
100 Muslim villages in Kerala have no facilities for primary education. The
distance between the schools is one-kilometre, awful fact in Kerala circumstance.
Sachar Committee has observed that 740 new schools are required under this
criterion. in U.P. level the distance between schools is three kilometres.
According to this criterion, many U.P. Schools will also be needed. Most of the
Muslims in Kerala live in the Malabar region. But the disadvantage of primary
education is felt the most in the Malabar regions.
Status of Muslims in Secondary Education
At the secondary level as well, Kerala
Muslims are lagging behind compared to other communities. According to the
Kumarapilla Commission Report mentioned earlier, the number of Muslims who
completed SSLC during 1964-65 was 80 out of 1000. Christians were 111 out of
1000. Only the Ezhavas are below the Muslims, at 70 per 1,000. A community-wise
figure of SSLC passers in 1968 is available. Scheduled Tribes 0.6 percentage,
Scheduled Caste 1.5 percentage, Muslims 1.7 percentage, Ezhavas 4.0 percentage,
Syriac Christians 7.5 percentage, Nair 9.2 percentage, Jacobite Christians 9.4
percentage, Brahmins 22.2 percentage. It is the Brahmins who maintain the most
excellence in this. The condition of the Muslims is below that of the Ezhavs.
In the 1990s, Muslim high school attendance was 16.6 percentage of the Muslim
population. In 1991 The figures of various communities who have passed SSLC are
given below. The population of Hindu category is 29.8 percentage of the total
population and SSLC pass is 24.3 percentage. Christian population is 19.3
percentage and SSLC pass is 34.3 percentage. But the population of Muslim community
is 23.3 percentage and SSLC pass is 13.3 percentage. Below Muslims there are
only Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Their population is 11 percentage
and SSLC pass is 3.5 percentage.
Kerala Muslims are lagging behind even when
we look at the figures for middle-matriculation education in 2001. The figures
for Muslims, SCs and others at the high school level are 84.8 per cent, 78 per
cent and 91.2 per cent respectively. 37.5, 35.5 and 64.3 percentage of those
have completed higher secondary education respectively. The higher secondary
figures for this category in 1953 were 3.5, 2.7 and 13.8 per cent respectively.
In 1973 it was 12, 12.6 and 33.9 percentage. 1991 saw a slight increase for all
categories. 22.5, 24.9, 50.1 percentage. When it reached 1999, it increases
again. 30.0, 30.8 and 58.7 percentage. In 2004, 60 percentage of SSLC's 100
percentage success rate was from Christian institutions. Only 25 Muslim
educational institutions have achieved 100 percentage
Muslims are experiencing discrimination
from the administration. A clear example of this was the policy adopted by the
LDF (left) government in 2000 when it abolished pre-degree. The government did
not allocate seats to the Muslim managements to replace the seats that were
taken away. The number of seats allotted on community basis was as follows. 201
(47%) seats for Christians with 21 percentage of the population. 71 (16.6%)
seats for Ezhava group with 23 percentage. 99 (23.1%) seats for Nair community
with 14%. But 70 (15.9%) seats were won by Muslim community which is 24%. Since
then, in the following years, the Muslims faced widespread hardship due to the
lack of plus-two seats.
Muslims are also lagging behind in the
number of high school and higher secondary educational institutions. Number of
High Schools in Kerala Government are 408, aided 1429, unaided 379, total 2216.
Out of this, if the Government High School is left out, the remaining number of
private institutions is 1808. 859 of them are functioning under Christian
management and 687 under Hindu management. But 252 institutions are under
Muslim management. This gap can also be seen in the case of higher secondary
educational institutions. There are a total of 1624 Higher Secondary
Institutions under the Government-Private category. Out of which 925 are under
different managements. There are 409 institutions for the Christian community,
337 for the Hindu community and 169 for the Muslim community. The same gap
exists in the case of vocational higher secondary institutions. There are 375
VHSSC institutes at Government Private levels. Of these, 128 are under
different managements. Their number is Christian sect 48, Hindu sect 65 and
Muslim sect 15. It is to be understood that out of the total VHSSC, 117 are in
Malabar and 258 in Kochi, where Muslims are most likely to live.
Higher Education and Kerala Muslims
The higher education sector is also not
promising. Estimates of Muslim presence in higher education for different years
are available. In 1943 The number of students in higher education in Kochi is
as follows. Hindus: 1, 13,168, Christians: 69,617, Muslims 9872, Jains 305. The
total number of higher educated people in Kerala in 1935 is as follows.
Muslims: 0, SC: 0, Others: 2 in percentage. In 1959 these were one per cent,
0.5 per cent and five per cent respectively. By 1965, they were 2 percentage, 1
percentage, and 6 percentage. 2.5 percentage, 1.5 percentage, and 7 percentage
in 1971. 2.7 percentage, 1.7 percentage, and 7.5 percentage in 1977. 3
percentage, 2 percentage, and 8 percentage in 1983. 3.5 percentage, 2.5
percentage, and 10 percentage in 1989. and 5 percentage, 4 percentage, and 15
percentage in 2001.
According to a study, the caste-wise
figures for degree education in 1968 are as follows. Brahmins 4.4 percentage,
Nairs 1.1 percentage, Ezhavas 0.3 percentage, Jacobites 2 percentage, Syrians
0.6 percentage, Muslims 0.2 percentage, Scheduled Castes .01 percentage,
Scheduled Tribes 0 percentage. In the same year, the figures in the field of
technology are respectively as follows. 4.5, 2.3, 0.9, 2.5, 1.2, 1.2, 03, 0
percentage. According to the Kerala study conducted after 2000 under the Kerala
Sastra Sahitya Parishad, the figures of communities in the field of higher
education are Hindus 18.7 percentage, SC castes 11.8 percentage, and Muslims
8.1 percentage.
Kerala Muslims are also lagging behind in
private level higher education institutions. There are a total of 150
management institutes in Arts and Science colleges in Kerala. Of these, 69 are
under the Christian category and 62 under the Hindu category. The remaining 19
are under the Muslim category. Of the total number of law colleges, two are for
Christians and six for Hindus. There are no legal institutions for the Muslim
community. There are a total of 110 engineering institutes. These are 37, 45
and 28 respectively. There are 20 B.Ed colleges in Kerala. These are 9, 7 and 4
respectively. There are 15 medical institutions. Their level is 5, 6 and 4
according to different communities. In case of dental colleges, 6, 6 and 6 have
equal share for all the three categories.
Causes of Muslim Backwardness
There are many historical, internal and
external reasons for the educational backwardness of Kerala Muslims. One of the
most important historical reasons is the identity crisis experienced by the
Muslim community. For many years, the Muslims were struggling against the
foreign occupation forces that continued to occupy Kerala soil. It is natural
that while the focus is on the struggle, it is not possible to pay enough
attention to the purely creative and constructive aspects such as the education
of the society. However, it is only when a nation survives the times and
remains at the forefront in all fields that it engages in creative and
constructive activities even in adverse circumstances. This principle is also
the criterion of success of culture and civilization. It is a fact that Muslims
have not been able to give enough importance to the application of this
principle. Even after the occupying forces left Kerala, the Muslim scholars
kept turning their backs on modern education, separating the religious and
physical education into watertight compartments. Education, which they claimed
to be religion, was conservative thinking that did not interact with the times
and society.
Another cause of backwardness is the lack
of collective responsibility of the Muslim community. The problems of education
can be solved only if the Muslims who constitute 25 percentage of the
population wake up and work. In the matter of education, it does not matter
that other communities are attacked. There should be constructive interactions.
Muslims are not awake and active in the field of education. Not only that, they
are engaging in completely reactionary and unnecessary discussions. Retaliation
in equal currency is an example of a reactionary approach when the caste issue
is raised. The controversy surrounding the marriageable age of Muslim girls is
an example of unnecessary debate.
Another important reason is the
spinelessness of the Muslim political leadership. After the formation of the
state of Kerala, most of the education departments were handled by the Muslim
League. Till date, the Muslim League has not been able to take a broad and
precise educational stand beyond political narrowness. In Malabar, where the
Muslim League has a majority, Muslims are the most backward in terms of
educational facilities and availability.
An important external factor is the ongoing
Muslim alienation by the upper echelons. Reservation is a temporary mechanism
of the constitution to bring backward communities into the mainstream. The
recent revival in getting education through reservation has been negligent. But
at present Muslims are generally very concerned about the issue of reservation.
But there is no need for reservation in upper castes. The community should not
give in to the pressures against reservation and use alternative strategies to
ensure active presence in education.
Conclusion
From what has been described, do not assume
that the educational scene of Kerala Muslims is completely hopeless. Rather,
these are only the problems and crises they faced in the field of education.
Along with problems and crises, their recent awakening is auspicious. They have
acquired the resilience to overcome adversity. The role of Muslim organizations
in making this hopeless situation possible is insignificant. With the
ideological energy of the Kerala Muslim Union, the Mujahid faction created a
breakthrough in the field of education. Jamaat-e-Islami also fuelled the
educational revolution by introducing an innovative method of integrating
religious and physical education. The formation of MES in 1964 was a milestone.
Muslims are more vigilant than ever when it
comes to education. They have realized that only through awakening in the field
of education can they become a pressure force in the society. Most parents want
their children to have good moral and social education. Students are also very
interested in education. They are workaholics to the point of achieving their
goals without stopping their studies halfway. Their pursuit of knowledge is not
limited to educational institutions in Kerala. Their presence is evident in
central and foreign universities and other academic institutions outside
Kerala. The future plans of Kerala Muslims should be to give more support and
direction to this very positive trend.
Reference
1. History of Calicut Muslims - P.P. Mammad Koya Parapil.
Focus Publication. Kozhikode
2. Renaissance Thoughts - Ali Issat Begovich. I. PH
Kozhikode.
3. Great Mappila Literary Tradition - CN Ahmad Maulavi,
K. K. Abdul Karim. Azad Book Stall Kozhikode.
4. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan (Biography. Aligarh Muslim
University Publication. 5. Kerala. Prabodhanam Special Edition (1998) 6.
Minority Education in India
5. History of Muslims Educational Instruction in Kerala
during 20th Century - Nazeer (Phd. Thesis, Kerala University, TVM)
First Part of the Article: From Religious to Secular Education: How Kerala
Muslims Adopted Modern Education - Part 1
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A regular columnist for NewAgeIslam.com,
Mubashir V.P is a PhD scholar in Islamic Studies at Jamia Millia Islamia and
freelance journalist.
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