For now, little scope for NEP in Delhi
In all his public discourses ever since the notification of the New Education Policy (NEP), Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ has insisted on having the state governments on board. He has been generous in saying that since education was part of the concurrent list, states have to be persuaded to adopt the policy.
However, Nishank is not conveying the message that each state could go its own way. It’s not to be forgotten that there are autonomous central agencies that lay down the roadmap for education and their guidelines have to be adhered too. For example, University Grants Commission (UGC) is the regulatory body for higher education and the state universities have to follow it.
However, during Covid-19 pandemic, a point of friction came where the state government-run universities refused to conduct final year examinations despite clear guidelines from the UGC. It was only after the Supreme Court’s direction that the exams are be held. We have a typically confusing scenario in Delhi, where the under-graduate students of Delhi University, which is a Central University, have finished their examination held online under an open book scheme, whereas students of the state government-run Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (GGSIPU) are still uncertain about their future.
If we make a case study of Delhi, implementing NEP would indeed be an onerous task. State Education Minister Manish Sisodia on several occasions has said that he was not amenable to the idea of implementing the NEP, which he finds deficient on many counts. While Sisodia has the prerogative of expressing his opinion based on his valued understanding of the matter, it should also be not lost on the people that the positioning of the AAP government on the matter has more to do with politics than philosophy. AAP government has already entered into chafing with the Centre on several occasions.
We have discussed in these very columns the issue of funding the 12 DU colleges financed by the Delhi government. Since the state government has almost abdicated its responsibility of running these colleges, having failed to release any funds since May this year, they are on the verge of closure. However, there is a bigger instance when the Delhi government challenged the UGC guidelines itself. It pertains to the autonomy of the colleges. The NEP lays special emphasis on making colleges autonomous in the long run and has also set a deadline for it.
This is not the first time the UGC has brought out the scheme of converting university-affiliated colleges to autonomous bodies. In the past few years, UGC invited applications from colleges, possessing essential qualifications like high grade from the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), to get inspected for autonomous status. Several colleges across the country took the opportunity and many institutions are today enjoying autonomous status. Similar applications were also made by a few colleges of the GGSIPU.
At least three colleges were recommended for autonomous status. The Delhi government, however, decided to not agree with the UGC recommendation. When these colleges went to court to seek direction to abide by the recommendation, the goernment, as an afterthought, moved a larger bench questioning validity of the UGC rule itself. Given the circumstances, it can be safely said for NEP, Dilli Door Hai.
Sidharth Mishra
Author & President, Centre for Reforms, Development & Justice