A Mumbai-based teacher, who is on the short-list of a USD 1 million global prize for teachers, on Saturday called on the Indian government to create “new systems” of education that allow everyone to flourish.

Robin Chaurasiya, who runs a not-for-profit school in Mumbai for girls from the city’s red light areas, is the only

Indian among 10 finalists for the London-based Varkey Foundation sponsored Global Teacher Prize to be announced at the annual Global Education & Skills Forum (GESF) in Dubai on Sunday.

“The purpose of education is not to oppress people, not to cycle systems of pressure that are already in existence that are holding India down. We need to completely create new systems that will allow everyone to flourish and not just recreate systems of oppressions that are already existence,” said Ms Chaurasiya, the founder of Kranti School.

Asked about her plans if she was to win the big prize, she said she would split the prize money with her fellow nominees from the United Kingdom, United States, Nairobi, Palestine, Japan, Finland, Australia and Pakistan.

“I plan to distribute it with the finalists. I think they are all doing such phenomenal work in regions like Pakistan and Palestine. As much as I connect with my kids so deeply, I can imagine all the other teachers feel the same. Kranti School plans to expand to other red light areas of Mumbai and eventually work towards its special curriculum being adopted around the country.

“Right now we work in our home and we have 18 girls but we want a proper school. The curriculum is ready, everything is ready, we might as well be reaching more students,” she added.