BENGALURU: The National Education Policy (NEP), 2020, a key project of the BJP-led central government, will be withdrawn from the state’s higher education institutions from the next academic year, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced on Monday.
Speaking during a meeting held at the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) office, Siddaramaiah said the NEP, implemented by the previous BJP government in the state, will be entirely abolished starting from the next academic year.
The policy will remain in effect for the current academic year.
Siddaramaiah said careful preparations need to be made before abolishing the NEP. He clarified that because time constraints, NEP will continue this academic year so as not to disrupt students’ ongoing academic activities.
“The NEP has to be abolished after making some necessary preparations. There was no time for preparations this year. By the time the election results came in and the government was formed, the academic year had already started. This year NEP will be continued as it should not cause problems to students in the middle of an academic year,” Siddaramaiah stated.
The chief minister expressed strong opposition to the NEP, indicating that it has met resistance from various stakeholders, including students, parents, lecturers, and teachers. He criticised the previous BJP government for introducing NEP in the state without implementing it nationwide, claiming that the policy sacrificed students’ interests.
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Karnataka was the pioneer in implementing NEP in higher education institutions, introduced by the previous state BJP government in 2021. However, as part of their pre-election promises, the Congress party had vowed to revoke NEP upon coming into power. The Congress also derisively referred to the policy as the ‘Nagpur Education Policy,’ alluding to the headquarters of the RSS.
Vice-chancellors of public universities had raised concerns about the practical challenges of implementing certain provisions of the policy. Issues were also raised regarding the availability of qualified faculty for teaching multidisciplinary courses and open elective subjects under NEP.
On Monday, deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar said that the government intends to craft a new education policy, which aligns with its vision.
Shivakumar emphasised the necessity for a thorough and comprehensive discussion regarding the NEP’s implications.
Chief minister Siddaramaiah has accused NEP of fostering divisive ideologies among students. Shivakumar asserted that NEP encroaches upon the state’s prerogatives, highlighting the government’s contention that it violates the state’s rights in the domain of education.
Commenting on the development, former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai had stated that it had taken nearly three years to implement the NEP in Karnataka.
“The committee headed by UR Rao was set up and consent from all states was obtained. After this, before implementation, a task force was formed and then it was implemented in higher and primary education,” he said, countering criticism against the NEP.
