NEP 2020: Education policy will reduce brain-drain to other nations, says PM Narendra Modi

The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 will tackle the issue of brain-drain from India, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Speaking at the NEP Governors' conference, PM Modi said that when international institutes will set up campuses in India, students will not feel a need to go abroad for pursuing higher education.

"India's brain-drain issue will be tackled through best international institution campus. Once all the best institutes are present in India, candidates won't need to travel abroad. This will also make Indian educational institutes more competitive," he added.

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NEP 2020 allows the top 100 international institutes to set up campuses in India. For this, a legislation has to be passed by the Parliament to allow foreign education institutes' campuses in India. So far, these global institutes had to tie-up with a local partner to set up an India campus.

Close to 200,000 students travel abroad every year for higher education programmes. Due to this, almost Rs 50,000 crore flows out of India every year for higher education programmes.

PM Modi said that all the stakeholders must implement the policy in letter and spirit. He added that by September 30, governors/state governments should have discussions and virtual events across universities to ensure that NEP is understood better.

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The Cabinet on July 29 gave its nod to the National Education Policy. Consequently, the Human Resource Development Ministry has been renamed as the Ministry of Education.

The National Education Plan proposes far-reaching changes in the system of education not only in India. It also wants a self-sufficient domestic ranking system for Indian educational institutes.

Freedom to choose courses

NEP 2020 will now allow students to choose between subjects in Arts, Commerce, and Science programmes in school education and higher education.

The idea is to have all-rounded development of the student by helping the candidate chose which combination of subjects they wish to take.

PM Modi said that through this, a student can choose the subjects that he/she likes rather than being forced to study only one stream.

"So far there was a lot of pressure among students to study certain education streams. This led to these students either dropping out midway or completing the course with no interest. This will no longer be the case," said the prime minister.

This means that be it at the school level or college level, students can mix-and-match subjects as per their interest. So, an Arts student could now take up Physics or Mathematics as a subject while a Science student could take up Music or Literature as a subject.

Job-ready education to be key

Prime Minister Modi said that NEP 2020 plays special emphasis on Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India). This, he said, will be successful only if students graduate as skilled candidates.

"NEP will help get students get the skills and knowledge for the future. The focus here is on learning and not studying. Focus is critical thinking and not merely curriculum. Emphasis is on passion, practically and performance emphasis," said PM Modi.

NEP 2020 has proposed that students learn vocational education from the sixth grade onwards. This according to PM Modi will help students get required skills from an earl age.

"Vocational education will not just make students more employable in India but will also help them be relevant for the global job market," he added.

Connecting students to their roots

While NEP 2020 aims to make Indian students be more relevant for the global economy, PM Modi explained that the policy also places special focus on staying connected to the roots.

This, he said, would be through promotion of local languages and culture and making it a part of the curriculum.

"Knowledge is what liberates our mind. To make this more effective, culture and the rich heritage of Indian languages will be connected to the education system," he said.

NEP 2020 aims to focus on regional languages. One such provision under NEP 2020 is to change the medium of instruction till at least the fifth grade to the local language or mother tongue. This will be implemented wherever possible.

Prime minister Modi said that there have been a lot of discussions on NEP implementation and especially around how the academic books will be translated into local languages. He added that the government is working with the stakeholders on this matter.

"We need to end the politicisation of education. NEP is not an education policy of the government. It belongs to the country and everyone needs to take ownership of it," he said.