Team Herald
PANJIM: The Students Islamic Organisation of India, Goa Zone, on Tuesday expressed its concerns about the prevailing educational environment in the State of Goa.
In a press conference held in the city, Imran Hossain, National Campus Secretary of SIO India, said one of the most disturbing issues is the easy and continuous availability of life-threatening drugs inside schools.
"The trends highlighted by Dr Bharat Sreekumar in the past months are highly disturbing. The easy availability of LSD inside schools has to stop. The Forensic Doctor at South Goa District Hospital also highlighted that these drugs are given free of cost to the students for first time use. Hidden behind stamps and smileys, these drugs are killing the future of our young generation," he said.
"The fact that these are given for free means that the drug dealers are not concerned solely about money. It is a well-thought plan to destroy the educational and academic lives of these bright minds," he said and pointed out that the SIO Goa had already highlighted these concerns and demanded that the government must intervene to stop this.
"We once again urge the government to immediately take note of this serious issue and come out with practical measures to eradicate this menace," he said.
The SIO Goa also expressed concern over the fall in the rankings of Goa University at regular intervals.
"We used to feature in the 101 – 150 band previously and now we are featuring in the 150 – 200 band in the rankings. This downfall makes the degree much less credible for students seeking education abroad in reputed universities. The Chief Minister's reaction on the issue shows that he remains clueless about such an important matter, despite him being the Education Minister of the State," he said.