HRD Ministry lays down 6 points roadmap for implementation of new NEP, to review in 2020
NEW DELHI: The HRD Ministry, which is in process of giving final shape to the new National Education Policy (NEP), has laid down a six-point roadmap for its implementation and decided to conduct a comprehensive review of the implementation status in 2030.
After some state governments and stakeholders raised concerns about the NEP draft, saying less has been talked about the implementation roadmap, the ministry outlined six guiding principles in the final draft which will be placed before the cabinet soon.
"Any policy is only as good as its implementation. Such implementation will require multiple initiatives and actions, which will have to be taken by multiple bodies in a synchronised and systematic manner," according to the final NEP draft. "First, implementation of the spirit and intent of the policy will be the most critical matter. While the Policy provides much detail, the intent and the spirit of the policy must serve as the most important consideration," it stated.
"Second, it is important to implement the policy initiatives in a phased manner, as each policy point has several steps, each of which requires the previous step to be implemented successfully. Third, prioritisation will be important in ensuring optimal sequencing of policy points -and that the most critical and urgent actions are taken up first - thereby enabling a strong base," the draft read. The ministry has argued that as the policy is interconnected and holistic, only a full-fledged implementation and not a "piece meal" one, will ensure that the desired objectives are achieved.
"Since education is a concurrent subject, it will need careful planning, joint monitoring, and collaborative implementation between the Centre and states. Timely infusion of requisite resources - human, infrastructural, and financial - at the central and state levels will be key for the satisfactory execution of the policy," the draft stated. "Finally, careful analysis and review of the linkages between multiple parallel implementation steps will be necessary in order to ensure effective dovetailing of all initiatives," it added. The ministry has decided that yearly joint reviews of the progress of implementation of the policy, in accordance with the targets set for each action, will be conducted by a designated team and the corresponding state body. "By 2030, it is expected that the past decade would have provided ample opportunities for evaluation, fine tuning as well as major changes, if called for, to be effected. Thereafter, a comprehensive review of the status of the implementation of the policy in its entirety will be undertaken," the draft read.