New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah praised the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 on Monday, saying it reflects the aspirations of citizens and that a time will come when many individuals from all over the world will apply for admission to Indian universities. He claimed that although the earlier programme was intended to foster professional achievement, NEP 2020 will also help India become a great country by transforming students into great human beings.
At a seminar on India's new educational strategy held at the Madhya Pradesh Assembly complex's Mansarovar Hall on the 100th anniversary of the birth of late Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Kushabhau Thakre, Shah spoke. The NEP, which the Union Cabinet authorised in 2020, is the spirit of India and a proclamation of Indianness, according to the Union home minister.
According to the BJP spokesman, the new policy strives to prioritise Indian arts and culture and to protect native languages and mother tongues while utilising the best educational ideas.
“A time will come when people from all over the world will come in large numbers to study in Indian educational institutions, which will figure among the best international academic institutions," Shah said.
The policy, according to the Union home minister, is a reflection of citizens' aspirations and lays the groundwork for India's future. All those involved in the education sector should take the NEP 2020 seriously, he advised, noting that its five pillars are affordability, accessibility, quality, fairness, and accountability.
The strategy, according to the Union home minister, places a strong emphasis on careful consideration and reasoning, and it will be extremely beneficial to both instructors and pupils. According to Shah, a country won't become a great nation simply because of its rivers or mountains; it also needs outstanding individuals to do it.
“The NEP that Prime Minister Narendra Modi implemented in 2020 will make the country's children great human beings. It will also make India a great nation which will shine bright like the Sun in the entire world,” Shah said.
Whenever education policies are introduced, the union home minister claimed earlier, there is opposition, but this was not the case with the NEP 2020, which was thoroughly debated among stakeholders before being put into effect.
By concentrating only on English, according to Shah, Britishers sought to increase Indians' sense of inferiority and prolong their colonial dominance over the nation. The senior BJP official referred to Thakre as a "walking university" (chalta firta vishwavidyalaya) and added that party members in Madhya Pradesh were fortunate to have his support.
Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, was commended by Shah for establishing technical and medical education programmes in Hindi.
"With emphasis on research and development, by 2040 we will be ahead of many nations," he said.
Shah said promotion of technology will significantly reduce school dropout rates.
Chouhan and BJP state president VD Sharma also addressed the seminar. The NEP, which replaced the National Policy on Education framed in 1986, is aimed at paving the way for transformational reforms in school and higher education systems to make India a global knowledge superpower.
Choice between 3 or 4 year undergraduate courses, multiple entry and exit options in degree courses, adding 3.5 crore seats in higher education institutions and fixation of fees were among the higher education reforms outlined in the new NEP.
