BENGALURU: The education ministers and experts from Karnataka came out strongly against the National Education Policy (NEP), which was launched by the Union government in 2020. While Primary and Secondary Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa termed the policy a threat to equality and quality of education, his higher education counterpart MC Sudhakar said NEP was just a copy of the Western education system.
At an education convention organised by the All India Save Education Committee, Karnataka, (AISEC) here on Friday, Bangarappa said Karnataka will implement a pro-people policy for education. “The government will strive to formulate a right and just education policy. The state will take recommendations and guidance from progressive education experts in the state,” the minister added.
Sudhakar pointed out that the policy was implemented without any preparation and it had an “underlined agenda.” “The central government did not consider 33% of children who hail from the scheduled caste communities and close to 50% from minority communities,” he said.
He added that there was a need to transform Anganwadis into pre-schools and improve access to and the standard of the state’s education system.
“The BJP government violated all principles and ethics while implementing NEP 2020. There was no discourse, expert recommendations or a democratic parliamentary enactment of the policy,” said Social Welfare Minister HC Mahadevappa. He stressed on the need to “devise a progressive and scientific education policy that helps mould good character and strong personality in students.”
Several education experts such as UGC former chairman Prof Sukhdeo Thorat opined that NEP was implemented hurriedly and formulated for the privilege of a few. They called for the state education policy based on equality, fraternity and socialistic values.
Rajashekhar V N, Vice-President, ASIEC, said, “Textbooks should not become political tools and should be medium of dispersing real knowledge which is free from unscientific views.”
Another expert added that recruitment of qualified teachers should be taken up and regularising services of guest teachers can strengthen public education in the state.