 HUMANISING SOCIETY

"Difficult it is for any work, to become easy. Even for a person to be a human being is not easy."

Said Ghalib, wonderfully expressing an eternal truth. This difficult work-making human beings of people - is exactly what an educational institution situated in a remote corner of India seeks to do.

The Institute is appropriately named "Insan." Housed in bamboo huts, the Insan School and College located in Kishanganj at the trijunction of India, Nepal and Bangladesh, is carrying out this bold experiment, winning many hearts in the process. The founder-director is Dr. Syed Hasan.

Dr. Hasan started the institute from scratch, refusing to ask for donations. He had no land to start his project. He first helped start the National School, thereby, establishing his bona fides with the school authorities who permitted him to conduct his own classes in their building before or after the school hours. Dr. Hasan started with 36 students. Since then, there was no looking back. A hut was hired at a monthly rent of Rs. 50. "Insan" was born.

Today the Insan School and College has a complex of 200 huts spread over 120 hectares. Assets of the institute value over rupees one crore. Among the huts is a hall that can accommodate 5,000 students at a time.

The school inculcates the value of "insaniat" (humanity). The institute attracts children from all communities; 15 per cent of the students are non-Muslims. This is exactly the ratio of the non-Muslim population in Kishanganj district. Staff members also belong to a mixture of various communities.

The school imparts religious instruction, but it encourages no personality cult. It simply makes its students understand the spirit behind all religions. The students live, work and eat together.

The institution promotes self-reliance among the students and job orientation is part of the studies. The students run the campus. They have a sort of students' government with a leader of their own at the helm of affairs. The first 12 students in the merit list of the tenth class form the nucleus of this set-up. The students from this team are allotted portfolios like food, light, sanitation, education and sports. A student warden manages the affairs with the help of teachers. Earlier, they ran their own canteen and bakery and a bookshop on profit-sharing basis.

All this is in addition to other normal activities like sports, declamation contests and dramas. The school specially excels in preparation of science models.