The Education Business
“Bhaaai ji yahi to business k din hain aur teacher hain k zyada salary maang rhy hain.”
(Brother, these are the business days but teachers are not co-operating and they are demanding a raise in salaries).
Mr. Naeem is a very good example of this phenomena to which I call The Education Business. He once belonged to a middle-class family of Multan, the city of both saints and Prime Minister. Some years back, he and his brothers had a general store on a main road. Also they owned a plot attached to that shop. Life was hard. They had to work on their shop from Morning till night and it hardly helped them to live by mouth (A typical Pakistani Story which is so common that it can’t bring sorrow anymore).
One day, when he went to get his son admitted in a school he came to know that Admission fee is higher than his monthly income. Oh my God, they are looting in the name of education. Fees in thousands and books of hundreds. God Damn it! He returned and admitted his son in a government school. This is the common end of all the typical parents’ dreams who want their children study in private schools. But there is a little more to explore in his story.
Naeem had a business-mind and was always in search of opportunities to earn more money. An idea struck to his mind. ”Private schools are making a lot of money. What if I make my own school? Okay, I am illiterate but I will not teach, rather I will hire some teachers and will rest in Principal’s office.” He started calculating the budget and asking the experienced ones. He visited many private schools and acadamies, built up relations with some teachers and came to know that normally teachers are paid four to five thousands of rupees in a private school. ”What if I hire four teachers? 30 thousand a month? Adding electricty and other facillities, it will cost me fifty thousand rupees a month. And if I gather 200 students in a year for 1000 per student a month? OOooppss, profit margin is unbelievable.”
Next part of the story is very fast. He got loans to build a school on his plot, hired teacher, printed school’s ads and the things started going on. Within a year, he balanced his loans and now he is enjoying 340 students with 7 teacher’s staff ( three of these teachers have completed their Masters and other four are bachelors). Mr. Principal (Naeem) is totally illiterate and after closing school, he usually looks after his old general store for which he has plans to make another classroom as the number of students are increasing.
One of my friends, who is doing Masters in Business, also teaches in his school (Five thousands a Month) as a part-time job. Last friday, I went to meet him in his school and we were having some chit-chat with Mr. Naeem when he said,
“Bhaaai ji yahi to business k din hain aur teacher hain k zyada salary maang rhy hain.”
(Brother, these are the business days but teachers are not co-operating and they are demanding a raise in salaries).
Actually, new admissions were about to be started and teachers were demanding an increase in salary. They want fifty five hundred atleast. But Naeem is relaxed. He knows that there are many other Master degree holders walking in streets who will happily teach for five thousands a month.
This is the Education Business! God Damn it….
