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Subject: Governance

Important aspects of Society

  • Who are the Bru Tribals?

    Non-Brus of Tripura has proposed six places for settling the displaced Brus from Mizoram and set a limit for the number of families to be accommodated in two subdivisions that have borne the brunt of the 23-year-old refugee crisis.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q. With reference to ‘Changpa’ community of India, consider the following statement:

    1. They live mainly in the State of Uttarakhand.
    2. They rear the Pashmina goats that yield fine wool.
    3. They are kept in the category of Scheduled Tribes.

    Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (CSP 2014)

    (a) 1 only

    (b) 2 and 3 only

    (c) 3 only

    (d) 1, 2 and 3

    Who are the Brus?

    • Reangs or Brus are the second largest ethnic group in Mizoram.
    • Their exodus in 1997 was spurred by violent clashes in Mamith subdivision, a Reang-dominated area when they demanded the creation of an autonomous council that was vehemently opposed by Mizo groups.
    • Around 34,000 people were forced to live in sub-human conditions in tents in Tripura. No solution could be reached all these years.
    • These people were housed in temporary camps at Kanchanpur, in North Tripura.

    Read the complete thread here:

    [Burning Issue] Bru– Reang Repatriation Agreement

  • National Education Policy and current status of education

    The article contrasts the targets set in the National Education Polity with the present state of education in the country.

    Key recommendations

    • Redesigning the school curriculum to accommodate early childhood care and education.
    • Ensuring universal access to education.
    • Increasing gross enrolment in higher education to 50% by 2035.
    • Improving research in higher education institutes by setting up a Research Foundation.

    Let’s take stock of the current situation on the above-suggested parameters.

    1) Universal Access to Education

    • Despite the Right to Education Act-2009 retaining children remains a challenge for the schooling system.
    • As of 2015-16, Gross Enrolment Ratio was 56.2% at senior secondary level as compared to 99.2% at primary level.
    • Data for all groups indicates a decline in GER as we move from primary to senior secondary for all groups.
    • This decline is particularly high in case of Scheduled Tribes.

    NEP 2020 recommendations

    • The NEP recommends strengthening of existing schemes and policies which are targeted for such socio-economically disadvantaged groups.
    • Further, it recommends setting up special education zones in areas with a significant proportion of such disadvantaged groups.
    • A gender inclusion fund should also be setup to assist female and transgender students in getting access to education.

    2) GER to 50% in higher education

    • The NEP aims to increase the GER in higher education to 50% by 2035.  
    • As of 2018-19, the GER in higher education in the country stood at 26.3%.
    • The annual growth rate of GER in higher education in the last few years has been around 2%.

    NEP 2020 recommendations

    • The NEP recommends increasing capacity of existing higher education institutes by restructuring and expanding existing institutes.
    • It recommends that all institutes should aim to be large multidisciplinary institutes, and there should be one such institution in or near every district by 2030.
    • Further, institutions should have the option to run open distance learning and online programmes to improve access to higher education.

    3) Restructuring of Higher Education Institutes

    • The NEP notes that the higher education ecosystem in the country is severely fragmented.
    • At present, there is complex nomenclature of higher education institutes (HEIs) in the country such as ‘deemed to be university’, ‘affiliating university’, ‘affiliating technical university’, ‘unitary university’.
    • These shall be replaced simply by ‘university’.

    NEP 2020 recommendations

    • The NEP recommends that all HEIs should be restructured into three categories:
    • 1)  research universities focusing equally on research and teaching.
    • 2)  teaching universities focusing primarily on teaching.
    • 3) degree-granting colleges primarily focused on undergraduate teaching.
    •  All such institutions will gradually move towards full autonomy – academic, administrative, and financial.

    4) National research foundation to boost research

    • The NEP states that investment on research and innovation in India, at only 0.69% of GDP, lags behind several other countries.
    • The total investment on R&D in India as a proportion of GDP has been stagnant at around 0.7% of GDP.
    • Of which 58% of expenditure was by government, and the remaining 42% was by private industry.

    NEP 2020 recommendation

    • To boost research, the NEP recommends setting up an independent National Research Foundation (NRF).
    • The Foundation will act as a liaison between researchers and relevant branches of government as well as industry.
    • Specialised institutions which currently fund research, such as the Department of Science and Technology, and the Indian Council of Medical Research, will continue to fund independent projects.
    • The Foundation will collaborate with such agencies to avoid duplication.

    5) Digital Education

    • The NEP states that alternative modes of quality education should be developed when in-person education is not possible.
    • But let’s look into the accessibility of such mode.
    • As of 2017-18, only 4.4% of rural households have access to a computer (excludes smartphones).
    • Nearly 15% have access to internet facility.  Amongst urban households, 42% have access to the internet.

    NEP 2020 recommendations

    • Several interventions are recommended-
    • (i) developing two-way audio and video interfaces for holding online classes.
    • (ii) use of other channels such as television, radio, mass media in multiple languages to ensure the reach of digital content where digital infrastructure is lacking.

    6) Increasing public spending on education to 6% of GDP

    • Public spending of 6% of GDP was first made by the National Policy on Education 1968 and reiterated by the 1986 Policy.
    • NEP 2020 reaffirms the recommendation of increasing public spending on education to 6% of GDP.
    •  In 2017-18, the public spending on education-includes spending by centre and states-was budgeted at 4.43% of GDP.
    •  In 2020-21, states in India have allocated 15.7% of their budgeted expenditure towards education.
    • States such as Delhi, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra have allocated more than 18% of their expenditure on Education for the year 2020-21.
    • On the other hand, Telangana (7.4%), Andhra Pradesh (12.1%) and Punjab (12.3%) lack in spending on education, as compared to the average of states.

    Consider the question “Examine the provision with regard to increasing research in the country in the National Education Policy 2020.”

    Conclusion

    The National Education Policy is an ambitious document with the potential to transform. What is required is the zeal to implement and assess the progress by analysing the outcomes.

    Source-

    https://www.prsindia.org/theprsblog/national-education-policy-recommendations-and-current-scenario

  • Higher Education Financing Agency (HEFA)

    The JNU has got approval for a fund from the Higher Education Funding Agency (HEFA) for the construction of new infrastructure.

    Try this PYQ:

    What is the aim of the programme ‘Unnat Bharat Abhiyan’? (CSP 2017)

    (a) Achieving 100% literacy by promoting collaboration between voluntary organizations and government’s education system and local communities.

    (b) Connecting institutions of higher education with local communities to address development challenges through appropriate technologies.

    (c) Strengthening India’s scientific research institutions in order to make India a scientific and technological power.

    (d) Developing human capital by allocating special funds for health care and education of rural and urban poor, and organizing skill development programmes and vocational training for them.

    About HEFA

    • HEFA is a joint venture company of Canara Bank and Ministry of Human Resource Development.
    • It provides financial assistance for the creation of educational infrastructure and R&D in India’s premier educational institutions.
    • All the Centrally Funded Higher Educational Institutions will be eligible to join as members of the HEFA.
    • For joining as members, the educational institution must agree to escrow a specific amount from their internal accruals for a period of 10 years to the HEFA.

    Funding pattern of HEFA

    • HEFA will have an authorized capital of 2,000 crore rupees and the government equity would be 1,000 crore
    • It also mobilizes CSR funds from Corporates/PSUs which will, in turn, be released for promoting research and innovation in these institutions on a grant basis.
    • The principal portion of the loan will be repaid through the ‘internal accruals’ of the institutions earned through the fee receipts, research earnings etc.

  • In news: Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme

    • One-third of the way through the financial year, government data shows that the MGNREGA scheme has used up almost half its allocated funds.
    • Its spending has been more than ₹48,500 crores out of the expanded ₹1 lakh crore allocations announced following the COVID-19 outbreak.

    Try this question for mains:

    Q.Discuss how the MGNREG Scheme has been providing a minimum basic income since the Covid pandemic. Also discuss how it can prove to be a game-changer if coupled with Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).

    About MGNREGA

    • The MGNREGA stands for Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act of 2005.
    • This is labour law and social security measure that aims to guarantee the ‘Right to Work’.
    • The act was first proposed in 1991 by P.V. Narasimha Rao.

    Its objectives

    • To enhance the livelihood security of the rural poor by generating wage employment opportunities.
    • To create a rural asset base which would enhance productive ways of employment, augment and sustain a rural household income.

    Features of the Scheme

    • MGNREGA is unique in not only ensuring at least 100 days of employment to the willing unskilled workers, but also in ensuring an enforceable commitment on the implementing machinery i.e., the State Governments, and providing a bargaining power to the labourers.
    • The failure of provision for employment within 15 days of the receipt of job application from a prospective household will result in the payment of unemployment allowance to the job seekers.
    • Employment is to be provided within 5 km of an applicant’s residence, and minimum wages are to be paid.
    • Thus, employment under MGNREGA is a legal entitlement.

    Also read:

    [Burning Issue] Reorienting MGNREGA in times of COVID

  • [pib] Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network (eVIN)

    The eVIN has reached 32 States and Union Territories (UTs) and will soon be rolled out in the remaining States and UTs of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Ladakh and Sikkim.

    Try this question from CSP 2016:

    Q.‘Mission Indradhanush’ launched by the Government of India pertains to:

    (a) Immunization of children and pregnant women

    (b) Construction of smart cities across the country

    (c) India’s own search for the Earth-like planets in outer space

    (d) New Educational Policy

    About eVIN

    • The eVIN is an innovative technological solution aimed at strengthening immunization supply chain systems across the country.
    • This is being implemented under the National Health Mission (NHM) by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
    • It aims to provide real-time information on vaccine stocks and flows, and storage temperatures across all cold chain points in the country.
    • This system has been used during the COVID pandemic for ensuring the continuation of the essential immunization services and protecting our children and pregnant mothers against vaccine-preventable diseases.

    Components of eVIN

    • eVIN combines state-of-the-art technology, a strong IT infrastructure and trained human resource to enable real-time monitoring of stock and storage temperature of the vaccines kept in multiple locations across the country.
    • At present, 23,507 cold chain points across 585 districts of 22 States and 2 UTs routinely use the eVIN technology for efficient vaccine logistics management.

    Benefits of eVIN

    • It has helped create a big data architecture that generates actionable analytics encouraging data-driven decision-making and consumption-based planning.
    • It helps in maintaining optimum stocks of vaccines leading to cost savings. Vaccine availability at all times has increased to 99% in most health centres in India.
    • While instances of stock-outs have reduced by 80%, the time taken to replenish stocks has also decreased by more than half, on an average.
    • This has ensured that every child who reaches the immunization session site is immunized, and not turned back due to unavailability of vaccines.

  • Understanding text and context of National Education Policy

    The article critically examines the various aspects of the National Education Policy 2020 and the issue of flexibility and exams has been analysed closely.

    Context of scepticism

    • The New Education Policy is a forward-looking framework for transforming Indian education.
    • But the past record on implementation of polity raises the concern that the New Education Policy should not turn out to be just “another document”.
    • Also, the emphasis in the document on critical thinking and free inquiry is entirely well placed.
    • But universities are being intimidated into political and cultural conformity.
    • The document lays down objectives; the strategy has yet to come.

    Walking the tightrope

    • On the language issue it prefers the long-standing recommendation of primary education in the mother tongue.
    • But does not categorically recommend curb English.
    • On the basic architecture of delivery, policy does not show an inclination towards public or private education both in school and higher education.

    School education: Most promising part

    • The policy focus on early child development, learning outcomes, different forms of assessment, holistic education, and,  recognises the centrality of teacher and teacher education.
    • The document recognises that “the very highest priority of the education system will be to achieve universal foundational numeracy and literacy.”
    • The suggestions for school education are ambitious, centred on the students, cater to their pedagogical diversity, and take on board the world of knowledge as it is now emerging.

    Multidisciplinary education

    • The document mentions the word multidisciplinary a bit too much, without explicating what it means.
    • One way of thinking about this is not in terms of multiple subjects.
    • It is reorienting education from disciplinary content to modes of inquiry that allow students to access a wide variety of disciplines.

    Two concerns

    1) Flexibility issue

    • Under the policy, students might need different exit options.
    • But it is unclear if the diploma or early exit options all be made available within a single institution, or different institutions.
    • If it is within single institutions, this will be a disaster.
    • Because structuring a curriculum for a classroom that has both one-year diploma and four-year degree students takes away from the identity of the institution.
    • There is also a risk that without adequate financial support, the exercising of exit options will be determined by the financial circumstances of the student.
    • The flexibility offered through multidisciplinary education is against the principle that different institutions have a different characters and strengths.
    • A healthy education system will comprise of a diversity of institutions, not a forced multi-disciplinarity.

    2) Issue of exams conundrum

    • The document rightly emphasises that focus needs to shift from exams to learning. But it contradicts itself.
    • Exams are burdon because of competition and cost in terms of opportunities.
    • So the answer to the exam conundrum lies in the structure of opportunity.
    • This will require a less unequal society both in terms of access to quality institutions.
    • Exams are also necessary because in a low trust system people want objective measures of commensuration.
    • So the policy reintroduces exams back into the picture by recommending a national aptitude test.
    • But the idea that this will reduce coaching is wishful thinking, as all the evidence from the US and China is showing.

    Consider the question “The National Education Policy 2020 moves away from rigidity and offers flexibility in many ways. In light of this examine the flexible dimensions offered in the policy and issues with it.”

    Conclusion

    The policy is commendable for focussing on the right questions. But the hope is that with this our education policy can be transformed into a treat, not another trick.

  • Issues metropolitan cities face

    Metropolitan cities of India suffers from various issues. This article analyses such issues and suggests some steps to deal with them.

    Inadequate public health infrastructure

    • India’s public health expenditure in 2018 was a mere 1.28% of GDP.
    • According to the World Bank, India’s out-of-pocket health expenditure was 62.4% in 2017, against the world average of 18.2%.
    • Manpower in the health sector is low with India’s doctor-population ratio being 1:1,457  against WHO norm of 1:1,000.

    Governance issues

    • Factors underlying city governance include spatial planning, municipal capacities, empowered mayors and councils and inter-agency coordination, and ward-level citizen participation.
    • Twenty-seven after the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, these reform agendas continue to be slow in implementation.
    • India’s metropolitan cities have weak capacities in finance and staffing.
    • Bengaluru’s average percentage of own revenue to total expenditure is 47.9%, Chennai 30.5%, Mumbai 36.1% and Kolkata at 48.4%.
    • According to ASICS 2017, Mumbai has the highest number of officers per lakh population at 938 in the country.
    • Yet it is abysmally low compared to global cities such as Johannesburg with 2,922 and New York with 5,446 officers per lakh population

    Limited powers of mayors

    • The leaders steering India’s metropolitan cities are toothless.
    • No big metropolitan cities with 10 million-plus population has a directly-elected Mayor.
    • Mumbai’s Mayor has a tenure of 2.5 years, Delhi and Bengaluru, a mere one year.
    • Mayors do not have full decision-making authority over critical functions of planning, housing, water, environment, fire and emergency services in most cases.
    • Our metropolitan cities are far from being local self-governments.
    • Parastatal agencies for planning, water and public transport report directly to State governments.
    • The State government also largely controls public works and police.
    • Globally, metropolitan cities are steered by a directly-elected leader.
    • Evolved examples include the Tokyo metropolitan government and recent experimental models such as combined authorities in the United Kingdom and Australia.

    Suggestions

    • India needs home-grown solutions suited to its context and political realities while imbibing lessons on institutional design from global examples.
    • It is time the Central and State governments lead efforts towards a metropolitan governance paradigm.
    • The first steps should include empowered Mayors with five-year tenure, decentralised ward level governance, and inter-agency coordination anchored by the city government.

    Lack of transparency, accountability and citizen participation

    • Transparent cities with institutional platforms encouraging citizen participation improve urban democracy.
    • No metropolitan has functional ward committees and area sabhas.
    • An absence of citizen participation is worsened by poor transparency in finance and operations.
    • As per ASICS 2017, India’s big metropolitan cities on average score 3.04/10 in transparency, accountability and participation.

    Significance of smaller cities

    • A World Bank report notes that despite the emergence of smaller towns, the underlying character of India’s urbanisation is “metropolitan”.
    • Under this metropolitan character, new towns emerge around existing large cities.
    • According to a McKinsey report, in 2012, 54 metropolitan cities and their hinterlands accounted for 40% of India’s GDP.
    • The report also estimates that by 2025, 69 metropolitan cities, combined with their hinterlands, will generate over half of India’s incremental GDP between 2012 and 2025.
    • Despite this, India is yet to begin an active discourse on cohesive metropolitan governance frameworks.
    •  Studies by the Centre for Policy Research point that India’s spatial feature exhibits the growth of small towns beyond the economics of large agglomerations.
    • This indicates that while India’s urban vision should focus on its metropolitan cities to reap the benefit of scale, it shouldn’t ignore smaller cities.

    Consider the question “Examine the issues in the governance of metropolitan cities. To what extent the limited power of mayors contributes to the issues of the metropolitan cities in India?”

    Conclusion

    India should use the current pandemic as an opportunity to introspect and reform the way its metropolises are governed.

    Back2Basics: ASICS 2017

    • The Annual Survey of India’s City-Systems (ASICS) 2017 evaluates quality of governance in cities, covering 23 major cities in India across 20 states based on 89 questions.
    • Indian cities scored between 3.0 and 5.1 on 10, with Pune topping the charts for the first time.
    • Other cities that came in the top five include Kolkata, Thiruvananthapuram, Bhubaneswar and Surat, with scores in the range of 4.6 to 4.5.

  • Technical Platform on the Measurement and Reduction of Food Loss and Waste

    The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has unveiled a new platform to help accelerate the global reduction in food loss and waste.

    Try this PYQ from CSP 2016:

    Q. The FAO accords the status of ‘Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS)’ to traditional agricultural systems. What is the overall goal of this initiative?

    1. To provide modern technology, training in modern farming methods and financial support to local communities of identified GIAHS so as to greatly enhance their agricultural productivity.
    2. To identify and safeguard eco-friendly traditional farm practices and their associated landscapers, agricultural biodiversity and knowledge systems of the local communities.
    3. To provide Geographical Indication status to all the varieties of agricultural produce in such identified GIAHS.

    Select the correct answer using the code given below.

    (a) 1 and 3 only
    (b) 2 only
    (c) 2 and 3 only
    (d) 1, 2 and 3

    About the Platform

    • The Technical Platform on the Measurement and Reduction of Food Loss and Waste brings together information on measurement, reduction, policies, alliances, actions and examples of successful models applied to reduce food loss and waste across the globe.
    • The platform will contain information on measurement, reduction policies, alliances, actions and examples of successful models applied to reduce food loss and waste.
    • The platform will be officially launched on the first International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste on 29 September 2020.

    How will it work?

    • The platform is as a gateway to information on food loss and waste from various resources, including the largest online collection of data on what food is lost and wasted.
    • Links to related portals from development partners are also provided.

    Why need such a portal?

    • Food loss and waste is a sign of food systems in distress. Nutritious foods are the most perishable, and hence, the most vulnerable to lose.
    • Not only food is being lost, but food safety and nutrition are being compromised as well.
    • At least 14 per cent of food is lost (food wastage and food loss together), valued at $400 billion annually.
    • In terms of greenhouse gas emissions, the food that is lost is associated with around 1.5 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.
    • Major losses are seen in roots tubers and oil-bearing crops (25 per cent), fruits and vegetables (22 per cent), and meat and animal products (12 per cent).
    • Reducing food loss and waste can bring about many benefits: more food available for the most vulnerable; a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions; less pressure on land and water resources; and increased productivity and economic growth.

    Food loss vs food wastage

    • There is a difference between food wastage and food losses.
    • Food is wasted when it is discarded by consumers or is disposed of in retail due to its inability to meet quality standards.
    • Food loss, on the other hand, occurs when it is spoilt or spilt before reaching the final product or retail stage.
    • For example, dairy, meat, and fish can go bad in transit because of inadequate refrigerated transport and cold storage facilities.

    Back2Basics: Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)

    Objective: Lead international efforts to defeat hunger

    Members: FAO has 194 Member Nations, two associate members and one member organization, the European Union

    Headquarters: Rome, Italy

    Year Founded: Established in 1945

  • National Education Policy needs scrutiny

    National Education Policy, while comprehensive in its approach misses out on some crucial issues. These issues are discussed here.

    Following are the issues with the National Education Policy-

    1) Implications for SEDGs

    •  Implications of the policy for SEDGs-Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Groups-needs to be considered.
    • The term “caste” is absent from the document apart from a fleeting reference to Scheduled Castes.
    • Also absent is any mention of reservation in academic institutions, whether for students, teachers, or other employees.
    • Reservation is the bare minimum required in terms of affirmative action in the highly differentiated socio-economic milieu in which we exist.

    2) Education in tribal areas

    • There is the passing reference to educational institutions in tribal areas, designated as ashramshalas.
    • While there are sections of the document that describe ways in which SEDGs are supposed to gain access to higher education institutions, there is no time-frame that is specified.
    • In a situation of growing privatisation how these policies will be implemented is a matter of concern.

    3) Multi-disciplinarity misses some disciplines

    • Multi-disciplinarity is an attractive and flexible proposition, allowing learners to experiment with a variety of options.
    • While the list of the disciplines in which multi-disciplinary approach is allowed is unexceptionable, it is worth flagging what is missed out.
    • Fields of studies such as Women’s Studies or Gender Studies, Cultural Studies, Media Studies, Dalit Studies, Studies of Discrimination and Exclusion, Environmental Studies and Development Studies are missing.
    • Many of these have engaged with multi-disciplinarity/inter-disciplinarity in exciting and disturbing ways, bringing to the fore issues of diversity, difference and identity.

    4) Problem of autonomy

    • While the documents mention autonomy and choice in the document, but there are limits.
    • For instance, the selection of vocational subjects in middle school is described as a fun choice.
    • At the same time, it is to be exercised “as decided by States and local communities and as mapped by local skilling needs”.
    • National Testing Agency, will be a centralised agency to conduct exams will be against the autonomy proposed in the policy.
    • HEIs will now be run by a Board of Governors backed by legislative changes where required.
    •  Further centralisation is envisaged through the setting up of “the National Higher Education Regulatory Authority (NHERA).

    5) Depriving the HEI democratic functioning

    • Several universities and HEIs have evolved and sustained democratic mechanisms, including academic and executive councils.
    • What has made them vibrant institutions is the presence of faculty and students, elected, as well as on the basis of seniority and rotation.
    • Abandoning them will deprive members of HEIs of an opportunity to engage with the challenges of democratic functioning.

    6) No mention of Fundamental Rights

    • Several values are identified as constitutional and there is an occasional mention of fundamental duties.
    • But there is no mention of fundamental rights.

    Consider the question “Examine the provision for governance of education in the National Education Policy. Also, examine the issues with the policy.”

    Conclusion

    The Education Policy has many novel ideas with the potential to transform the education system in the country, however, the issues discussed here highlights the need to revisit it, before it is actually implemented.

  • Overview of National Education Policy

    The Education Policy 2020 comes with many changes in education in the country. Key aspects of the policy are discussed in the article.

    Context

    •  National Education Policy 2020 is the fourth major policy initiative in education since Independence.
    • The last one was undertaken a good 34 years ago and modified in 1992.
    • NEP 2020 seeks to address the entire gamut of education from preschool to doctoral studies.

    Challenges India faces in education

    • Lack of resources and capacity.
    • Dozens of mother tongues, a link language that despite being the global language of choice is alien to most.
    • A persistent mismatch between the knowledge and skills imparted and the jobs available.

    Follwing are the key aspects of the policy-

    1) 5+3+3+4 Model

    • A 5+3+3+4 model recognises the primacy of the formative years from ages 3 to 8 in shaping the child’s future.
    • It also recognises the importance of learning in the child’s mother tongue till at least Class 5.
    • As picking up languages is easy between ages 3 and 8, children will learn English and mother tongue together.
    • Multilingual felicity could become the USP of the educated Indian.
    • The policy envisages 100% Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in school education by 2030.

    2) Flexibility in choosing subjects and vocational education

    • Another key aspect of new policy is the breaking of the compartments of arts, commerce and science streams in high school.
    • Policy also aims at introducing vocational courses with internship.
    • The ‘blue-collarisation’ of vocations in our society is also a hurdle to be overcome.
    • NEP 2020 proposes a multi-disciplinary higher education framework with portable credits.
    • An ambitious GER of 50% in higher education is envisaged by 2035.
    • At the apex will be Multidisciplinary Education and Research Universities, where research will be supported by a new National Research Foundation.

    3) Question of regualtion

    • NEP 2020 aims to free our schools, colleges and universities from periodic “inspections” and place them on the path of self-assessment and voluntary declaration.
    • Transparency, maintaining quality standards and a favourable public perception will become a goal for the institutions.
    • This will lead to all-round improvement in their standard.
    • A single, lean body with four verticals for standards-setting, funding, accreditation and regulation is proposed to provide “light but tight” oversight.

    4) Addressing deprivation

    • Inequality and challenges faced by the disadvantaged and disabled have been considered in NEP.
    • The NEP lays particular emphasis on providing adequate support to ensure that no child is deprived of education, and every challenged child is provided the special support she needs.

    5) Ancient knowledge

    • The long-neglected ancient Indian languages and Indic knowledge systems are also identified for immediate attention.

    Resource challenge

    •  An ambitious target of public spending on education at 6% of GDP has been set.
    • This is certainly a tall order, given the current tax-to-GDP ratio and competing claims on the national exchequer by other key sectors.
    •  If public and political will can be mustered, resources will find their way from both public and private sources.

    Consider the question “What are the measures proposed in the Education Policy 2020 for higher education.”

    Conclusion

    Resources are never the main roadblock to success in education. NEP 2020 provides the ingredients and the right recipe. What we make of it depends entirely on us.