Fiat on student selfies with CM’s note sparks row

Mumbai: Chief minster Eknath Shinde’s efforts at creating the largest online photo album of handwritten notes within 24 hours has sparked opposition among parents and activists, who see the exercise as a means of promoting political agendas.

On February 16, the school education department issued a circular instructing government and private schools in the state to upload selfies of students with their parents and a letter from Shinde. Schools were asked to upload the photos on www.mahacmletter.in within 24 hours, beginning 9am on Monday (February 26). Over 2.11 crore students from more than a lakh schools in the state have been enlisted for the initiative.

This initiative follows Shinde’s address to students in January under the ‘Mazi Shala, Sundar Shala’ (My School, Beautiful School) campaign, when he emphasised the importance of science and technology in shaping the nation’s future. It promises rewards for winning entries, including cash prizes, while the winner would have the opportunity to have a formal meal with the chief minister in Mumbai along with three family members and a teacher.

Activists and concerned citizens, however, accused the government of exploiting children for political gain.

Santosh Shinde, a child rights advocate and member of Vidhayak Bharti, said, “People may question how writing a few lines for the CM could be considered cruel. But any action forced upon a child against their will is inherently cruel. How can a student from grade 3 or 4 truly understand the topics mentioned in the letter and write about them? They are likely being coerced by parents or teachers to do so.”

Instead of informing students about their security or government spending on education, Shinde’s letter solely promotes his pet schemes, alleged Shinde. “Exploiting children to boost someone else’s achievements is simply not acceptable,” he said.

Prasad Gokhale, a parent from Mumbai, echoed these sentiments. Calling the campaign baseless, he said, “Instead of squandering time on futile endeavours like this, the government should prioritise efforts to improve the quality of government-run schools. Over the past few years, the government has increasingly emphasised privatisation through initiatives like cluster schools and school adoption schemes. It’s high time the government reconsiders these decisions and focuses on providing relief to underprivileged students rather than engaging in misleading promotions.”

School principals have also voiced concerns about the practicality of implementing the directive amidst ongoing examinations. The principal of a school in Shahapur highlighted the challenges of ensuring parent participation and expressed frustration over external pressures to achieve full compliance.

Teachers from private schools have also reported parental inquiries regarding concerns about privacy and security of the website where the photos are to be uploaded, indicating a lack of clarity and transparency in the initiative.

A parent from Chandrapur district has written to the chief minister highlighting several government decisions they deemed inappropriate, such as the uniform policy, egg distribution, and cluster school initiatives. Concluding the letter, the parent said, “The CM is guilty of promoting individualism, which goes against the principles of democracy. A government represents the public and its officials are public servants, thus, they cannot be compelled to provide photos.” The parent made it clear that they refused to comply with the request.