A seminar organised by the Telangana Education Commission raised objections to the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, calling it “ideologically driven, fiscally-misleading, and structurally flawed”.

“The NEP has no locus standi. Its contents were neither discussed with state governments nor debated in Parliament. It was merely approved by the Union Cabinet. It bypassed the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE), making it non-binding,” said Prof. Shantha Sinha, former Chairperson of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights.

“The policy lays emphasis on outcome, it does not acknowledge that outcome cannot be achieved without requisite inputs. In shifting from 3-year to 4-year UG programme with Multiple Entry Exit System (MEES), the policy document does not discuss questions of affordability and accessibility,” said Prof. G. Haragopal, former professor of the University of Hyderabad.

Presiding over the seminar, Akunuri Murali IAS (Retd.) Chairperson of Telangana Education Commission, charged that this is the first education policy that is aimed at dismantling the public funded education system. “Quality education cannot be promoted if outlay for school and higher education is so low. Telangana’s education outlay, for instance, is only 1.5% of its GSDP, far below the global average of 4.48%,” said Mr. Murali.

“The policy recommendations will lead to acute commercialisation and centralisation. Centralised entrance exams are yet another controlling point both in terms of syllabi and stratification,” said Kodandaram MLC.

The meeting reached a consensus that NEP 2020, in its current form, is not suitable for India’s diverse and unequal education landscape.