NEP 2020 proposes measures to intensify commercialization, corporatization and globalization of education. At present, private managements of educational institutions are not legally allowed to transfer any financial ‘surplus’ outside a given institution, whether for establishing another educational institution or for spreading business. However, this policy allows such financial transfer even across border.
Commercialization, corporatization and globalization of education shall be stopped. An egalitarian state-funded public education system to provide completely free education from KG to PG including research should be established. Private institutions collecting money from students in form of fees or other nominclature shall be regulated and gradually abolished instead of allowing them to transfer ‘surplus’ from one institution to other within the country or outside.
Ease of doing business in education
In line with World Bank promoted policies, the NEP 2020 seeks to reduce the state regulation of privately managed educational institutions. It recommends just for transparency allowing private players a free hand in all aspects of management like fees, salaries of the teachers and other staff, infrastructure etc.
What is required is that the parents, students, teachers and their representative bodies shall have the full powers to regulate the fee collecting privately run institutions in all aspects. The minimum level of infrastructural and pedagogical inputs shall be regulated through legislation.
Siphoning public funds to private operators
NEP 2020 recommends allocation of 6% of the GDP for education. In 1966, the Kothari Commission recommended a gradual increase in the allocation on education to reach 6% of GDP by 1986. However, no government till date has ever implemented the recommendation and it has remained an empty promise. The NEP 2020 makes the same promise, however, it also recommends siphoning of public funds to private players in the name of encouraging philanthropic initiatives. Thus, even if the government provides 6% GDP, public institutions will be starved of funds because these will be diverted to private institutions in the name of Public-Philanthropic Partnership (PPP).
What is required is that the allotment for education should be immediately increased to 6% of GDP from 2021-22 budgets itself. At the same time, the gap in funding accumulated over the past decades shall be filled over a period of 10 years from now. Public expenditure on education should be doubled immediately to provide free and equitable quality education to every child and youth from school to higher education through public institutions. Under no pretext any public fund should be transferred to private players. Philanthropic institutions, if any, should neither collect free from the students nor receive funds from the governments. They shall spread education from their own resources.
Centralization of power against federalism
NEP 2020 seeks to centralize all powers ranging from developing school text books and designing courses at all levels to regulation of research in universities in the hands of central government.
The recommendation to establish central bodies like Higher Education Commission of India (HECI), National Higher Education Regulatory Council (NHERC), General Education Council (GEC), and National Research Foundation (NRF) with purpose of controlling higher education shall be immediately scrapped. The National Testing Agency (NTA) shall also be scrapped. Entrance exams shall be conducted only at state level as and when required. NCERT curriculum/syllabus/text books shall only remain as model for states and shall not be imposed as is being proposed in the NEP. The NAAC is proposed to be changed into NAC empowered to license private operators to function as agencies to asses and accredit the higher educational institutions. This too should be scrapped. The state governments and people in the states shall have the full federal rights to decide all aspects of education at all levels. The subject of education should be shifted back to the State List from the Concurrent List in the Constitution of India. Federalism, the spirit of the constitution, shall prevail.
Bureaucratization of universities
NEP 2020 seeks to bureaucratize university administration by establishing Board of Governors (BoG) for each university with persons from within and without the university. The BoG will replace the Executive Councils and Academic Councils which include, with all their limitations, academicians usually elected by the university teachers. The policy doesn’t recognize the democratic rights of the university community – teachers, students and other staff members.
The directive of NEP 2020 to establish BoG in universities shall be scrapped. Democratic functioning of the universities shall be strengthened by necessary legislative and executive measures. The universities shall be free of control and interference of the government or any other body. Universities shall have full autonomy and stand for constitutional values.
Three-tier discrimination in school education
The NEP 2020 speaks about extending provision of education up to Class 12 i.e. up to 18 years of age. However, this is just rhetoric and, in reality, the policy entrenches three-tier discrimination in school education. Accordingly, the policy provides for a) some children being provided education through proper formal schools while the majority, belonging to the historically oppressed sections of society i.e. Bahujans, being diverted to the non-formal education modes like Open and Distance Learning (ODL) programmes and the essentially inaccessible online courses, thereby basically continuing as child labor [NEP 3.5]; b) some children would be enabled to pursue academic courses like languages & literature, mathematics, social science and natural science in schools while the majority would be pushed to vocational courses related with caste-based occupations; and c) some students would study higher-level courses and write higher-level exams while the rest would study lower-level ‘standard’ courses and write lower-level ‘standard’ examinations [NEP 4.38]. The latter class of students would become ineligible for higher education where the entrance exams would be centralized under National Testing Agency (NTA). It implies that, according to this policy, the majority of the children from the deprived and the disadvantaged sections of society joining school would be pushed to vocational courses and some of those who manage to pursue academic courses would be pushed to lower-level ‘standard’ courses and examinations. At the end of the day, most of these students would become ineligible for higher education. All the aforesaid three forms of discriminations are in addition to existing discriminations inherent in the multi-layered school system, differentially available for the upper caste and the lower caste as well as the rich and the poor.
What is required is that all children are provided (a) schools of comparable standards; (b) education through classroom-based transactions; and (c) equitable access to academic courses like languages & literature, mathematics, social science and natural science, at least up to Class X. Vocational Courses shall begin only after Class X and the policy provision of dual courses and examinations shall be withdrawn altogether. Fine arts, work education and health and physical education shall be provided as integral part of education to all children up to Class XII. Further, what is required is that the present Fundamental Right of the children for free and compulsory education in the age group of 6-14 years i.e. Article 21 A of the Constitution, shall be extended up to age of 18 years to cover Senior Secondary stage of education (Class XI-XII) and also downward in order to include the children below 6 years of age with Right to ‘Early Childhood Care and Education’ (ECCE). Academic junior colleges, Vocational junior colleges, polytechnics and Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) shall be strengthened while also ensuring that all children continue their education up to and through senior secondary level.
Common School System based on neighbourhood school shall be established which would minimize inequalities and democratize diversities. While the school shall be funded by the state, it shall be democratically administered by the teachers, students and parents in participative mode.
End of reservations
NEP 2020 seeks to do away with the social justice agenda. There is no provision for reservation in case of admission of students belonging to categories of SC, ST, OBC, minorities, women, and persons with special needs. In effect, the policy wants to push all persons from disadvantaged backgrounds out of the university campuses. This policy does not recognize the oppression of these communities for generations which has led to their marginalization and severe disadvantage. This policy does not honour the constitutional mandate of protecting these groups and providing them a level playing field through affirmative action. Different provisions in this policy are cleverly designed in a way to push disadvantaged communities and groups towards online and distance mode education.
What is required is that the opportunities in higher education shall be doubled within five years (not in 15 years as targeted in the NEP) from present 26.3% to minimum 50% for the relevant age group. Necessary number of colleges and universities shall be established to provide education essentially through real classroom interaction and not through online or distance mode. Reservations in admissions in higher education should be continued and properly implemented in all educational institutions, both public and private. Merit shall continue to be the criteria of selection in cases of competition for admissions both in reserved and open category. High fee structure in public and more so in private institutions is resulting in reservation of educational opportunities to the persons coming from affluent families. This should be done away with by abolition of commercialization of education and by making education free of cost. The government should provide economic support for contingent expenditure to all students who require such support. All students of schools and colleges and universities shall be provided hostels on the basis of requirement.
Teachers rights are at stake
NEP 2020 seeks to liquidate the rights of the teachers to job security and legitimate promotion opportunities and thereby their freedom to differ with authorities. It has proposed for introduction of subjective methods of selection and promotion of school teachers which include class room demo tests and performance. It proposes for a probation period, ostensibly, to ensure ‘excellence’ for regulation of services of the university teachers. According to the policy, the promotions will be given to persons with merit, commitment to the institution and leadership qualities. This means that the rules of reservation and seniority will be at stake. One is not sure if the proper qualifications will be reckoned in considering promotions as the policy seeks to replace everything by ‘commitment’ and ‘leadership qualities’. Rules will be replaced by the powers of discretion of the authorities in appointment, confirmation and promotion of the teachers in schools and faculty in colleges and universities. This will only result in large scale nepotism, favouritism and recruitment and promotion of right-wing cadre especially from upper caste-class in the school and higher education system. In short, implementation of NEP 2020 will result in an end of the rule of law and fairness in admissions and promotions.
What is required is that the undemocratic provisions of the NEP 2020 regarding the appointment, confirmation and promotion of teachers in school and higher education should be scrapped. At the same time, the existing rules and regulations shall be further developed to minimize the subjective role of the authorities in appointment, confirmation and promotion. The rule of reservation in appointments and the rule of reservation and seniority in promotions shall be strengthened and protected.
Constitutional values are at stake
NEP 2020 is developed to contradict and subvert the cherished constitutional values of secularism and socialism. These are not referred even once in the entire document. As elaborated above, this policy is prepared against the federal rights of the states, it does not find place for social justice agenda and for reservations, it nowhere refers to the fundamental rights of the people and speaks only about the fundamental duties, it doesn’t recognize that unity in diversity as the legacy of our composite culture.
The NEP 2020 should be scrapped and each state shall exercise its federal right to formulate its own education policy in conformity with the constitutional values of freedom, fraternity, equality, equal opportunity, socialism and secularism to provide equal quality education to all at free of cost and where purpose of such education shall be enlightenment of the individual and progress of the society to produce a humane and just society.
Infiltration of cadre and ideology
NEP 2020 provides extensively for infiltration of persons of the ruling party into educational institutions. The ‘class demo system’ in selection of teachers for appointment could facilitate the ruling parties to select persons close to their ideology; the proposed ‘probation’ in higher education for confirmation of services would facilitate the ruling powers to build pressure on the probationer to fall in line with the authorities; similarly, non-adherence to the rule-bound reservations, seniority and qualifications in selection would be used to promote persons close to the ideology of the party in power; and the appointments to the proposed Board of Governors (BoG) will be done on similar lines. The volunteers and counsellors proposed for schools would provide place for local party cadre of the ruling party and so on and so forth. From schools to universities, all educational institutions will go in to the hands of the ruling party. Due to extensive centralisation provided in the NEP, the regional parties would also be marginalized in this ‘kabja’ and party in power at the centre will be privileged. As the BJP is in power, the Sangh Parivar will be ruling the roost. School text books will be written by NCERT, higher education courses would be designed by GEC and research in universities will be controlled by NRF – all controlled by the central government, thus, giving ample scope for ideological infiltration in academics at all levels. The very admission of students to higher educational institutions will be screened by entrance examinations to be conducted by NTA. In sum, this new design would not only lead to centralisation of administrative control, but also for ideological infiltration in every aspect of education system. This paves way for the Sangh Pariwar to distort the entire process of education for bringing regimentation of thought to facilitate a fascist takeover.
Centralization of power at any level shall be withdrawn. All the proposed central bodies operating from Delhi, volunteer system in schools, the proposed BoGs for universities shall be immediately scrapped. Instead, efforts should be made for further democratization of the appointment of teachers in schools and faculty in universities, admissions of students and functioning of schools, colleges and universities. Education should be shifted back to the State List facilitating the people and governments in the states to formulate their own policies on the basis of constitutional values and responding to the diversified needs in all fields of life for enlightenment of the individual, democratization of cultures and progress of the societies. Thecentre shall only disburse financial resources to the states through the Finance Commission without exercising any control on states, universities and school education system in the states.
Cultural fascism
NEP 2020 seeks to establish a hegemonic order in all societal dimensions of caste, community, gender, language and culture. It speaks of the ancient history and jumps abruptly to the modern period (meaning neoliberal phase of capitalism) without any reference to the medieval period, social reformation movements and the freedom struggle. The history of the middle ages is not referred to deliberately ignore the great material and spiritual achievements under the Delhi Sultanates and Mughal Kingdoms as the rulers were Muslims; the social reformation movement is ignored because the policy makers want to continue and rather intensify the caste and gender discriminations and hegemonies; similarly,there is no reference to the independence struggle because the policy makers are against constitutional values and rights which were products of the independence struggle. The NEP projects Sanskrit to downgrade the languages of the people and thereby downgrading the linguistic and cultural minorities and to banish plurality. For the policy, culture is something monolithic and doesn’t change in time and diversify across populations and communities. In the name of Indian culture, the policy document eulogizes culture of ruling classes of a select region and select time neglecting the whole diversity, struggle and development process. To be brief, the policy stands for Manuwadi culture against religious and linguistic minorities, SCs, STs, OBCs; women and disabled in all the sections and against democracy as such. There is a great fascist design in the policy and provides for siphoning public funds to Sangh Parivar institutions in the name of encouraging philanthropic institutions and facilitate the Sangh Parivar persons to take over administration of educational institutions from school to universities through both formal and informal methods and also infiltration of RSS ideology, which is essentially a fascist ideology from preschool to research level.
What is required is that the scrapping of this entire NEP 2020, abolishing commercialization of education in all forms and the shifting the subject of ‘education’ back to the State List and the states/UTs shall develop their education policies in conformity with the values enshrined in the preamble of the constitution and needs of the people in the respective states.
Note: This is a part of the book published by AIFRTE in response to NEP 2020 and this part was drafted by Ramesh Patnaik who was a member of the drafting committee.
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