NEP should ensure equity: SIO

Warangal: New Educational Policy (NEP), which the Centre planned to bring out, should aim at enhancing equity and inclusion in higher education, suggested the leaders of Students Islamic Organisation (SIO).

The Union Ministry of Human Resources Development was engaged in consultations in drafting the NEP, which was expected to be released soon. In connection with that the SIO has launched a nation-wide campaign to build up consensus on the necessary features needed to be incorporated in the policy.

The SIO organised around 19 discussions in different cities; conducted an online survey and consulted numerous educationists across the nation to draft recommendations on the NEP, informed the SIO Warangal unit president, Syed Ahmed Ali and its state unit public relations secretary Syed Azharuddin.

The draft recommendations were categorised into school education, teacher education, language policy, vocationalisation, higher education, technical education and research in higher education. The commendations were being submitted to elected representatives and senior officials to get their support.

According to the SIO, higher learning institutions should be established in minority and backward community dominated areas in order to achieve equity and inclusion in higher education. Efforts must be made to facilitate and fund research in humanities and social sciences to promote personal and social growth.

There was an urgent need to address the issue of commercialisation of education, lay stress on protection of environment and natural resources, restructure and rebuild the Indian education system, Ahmed Ali said.

The education system should be built on the lines of ‘Neighbourhood School System’ to ensure equitable and quality education to all children irrespective of their sex, caste, social and economic status, he added.

There must be a well funded and extensive ‘National Scholarship Scheme’ targeting economically underprivileged and students from socially disadvantaged groups. The benefits enjoyed by a central university should be made available to the state universities.

“It is needless to say that the infrastructure support to teaching and learning must be upgraded on a regular basis by setting up state-of-art laboratories, libraries and communication technology,” opined Azharuddin.

‘The response from the public representatives was good towards the SIO recommendations. Recently we have met the newly elected Warangal MP P Dayakar and submitted the recommendations copy,’ the SIO leaders told The Hans India here on Monday.