Modi: British education not part of Indian ethos

The PM was speaking at a three-day education summit in Varanasi, also attended by Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath and governor Anandiben Patel.

The education system developed by the British was not a part of the Indian ethos and created a “service class”, and the National Education Policy (NEP) will open doors to take education out of narrow thinking towards modernity, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday.

(PIB)

The PM was speaking at a three-day education summit in Varanasi, also attended by Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath and governor Anandiben Patel.

Later in the day, Modi spoke about empowerment of the poor at a rally in the city, interacted with schoolchildren and inaugurated projects worth ₹1,774 crore.

“The basic premise of the NEP is to take education out of narrow thinking and connect it with the modern ideas of the 21st century. There was never a dearth of intellect and talent in the country, however, the education system created by the Britishers was never part of the Indian ethos. The British provided this education system to prepare a servant class for themselves to meet their needs,” he said at the Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha Samagam, organised by the Union education ministry to discuss the successful implementation of the NEP.

The NEP, which was launched in 2020, aims to enhance the quality of the education system which must provide to all students, irrespective of their place of residence, with particular focus on historically marginalized, disadvantaged, and underrepresented groups. It also aims to create higher performance standards for teachers by way of clearly outlining their roles and required competency. The policy envisions an education system rooted in Indian ethos that contributes directly to transforming India sustainably into an equitable and vibrant knowledge society, besides developing among the students a conscious awareness of one’s roles and responsibilities in a changing world.

The PM stressed that the education system should not create only degree holders. “We should not only create degree-holder youth but give our education system to the country, whatever human resources are needed for the country to move forward. Our teachers and educational institutions have to lead this resolution,” he added.

For creating a “New India”, the PM stressed that a new system and modern processes were critical. “What was not even imagined earlier is a reality now. Not only did we recover so fast from the big epidemic of Corona, but today India is one of the fastest-growing large economies of the world. Today we are the third-largest startup ecosystem in the world,” Modi said.

Before the programme began, Modi interacted with a group of children, who showcased for him skills ranging from yoga asanas to playing the drum. Dressed in their school uniform, the students surrounded the PM as he sat in a chair. A student sang the Shiv Tandav stotram while another played a drum. One of them performed yoga while another recited a poem on the importance of cleanliness. “Many congratulations to all of you. You all have different talents. You are very talented people,” Modi told the young students.

Later in his address, the Prime Minister said NEP 2020 focused on making children skilled according to their talents and choices. “Our youth should be skilled, confident, practical and calculative, education policy is preparing the ground for this,” he said, while emphasising the need to work for the future with a new thought process. “Children today are displaying a very advanced degree of talent and we need to be prepared to help and harness their talent,” Modi said.

Highlighting several changes in the education sector under the NEP 2020 – including the upcoming common entrance test for admissions to central universities – Modi said, “The NEP is now opening the way for studies in the mother tongue. In this sequence, ancient Indian languages like Sanskrit are also being carried forward,” he said.

Modi expressed confidence that India can emerge as a “big centre” of global education. He said guidelines have been issued to prepare Indian higher education as per international standards. “Many new colleges, universities, IITs and IIMs are opening in the country. There has been an increase of 55% in the number of medical colleges after 2014,” he said.

He further emphasised that universities should work in partnership with the government in different areas. “You have to decide your expertise. The area in which you are, you should do a survey and conduct study and give advice to the government. You should identify problems, resources and solutions to them within a 50-100km radius of universities. The student will get a project. The students can also study the impact of various government schemes,” he said.

The PM emphasised the importance of practical experience and fieldwork and asked researchers to validate their experience with verified testing and evidence-based research. He also recommended research on the demographic dividend of India and finding ways to best utilise this.

The summit will witness 11 sessions and is attended by 300 vice-chancellors and directors from both public and private universities, educationists, policy makers, and industry representatives.

Later in the day, PM Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation stones of multiple projects worth over ₹1,774 crore at an event at Sampurnanand Sports Stadium in Varanasi, his Lok Sabha constituency. “For us, development doesn’t just mean glitter. For us, development means empowerment of the poor, downtrodden, deprived, backwards, tribals, mothers and sisters,” he said.

He thanked the people of Uttar Pradesh and Kashi (Varanasi) for the massive support to the Bharatiya Janata Party in the 2022 UP assembly elections, when the party became the first to return to power in the state after a full term in a generation.

UP governor Anandiben Patel and Yogi Adityanath were among those present on the occasion. “I visited Kashi during the UP assembly election and sought support of people of the state and Kashi. The way all of you gave tremendous support with enthusiasm to me (the BJP), I am thankful to all of you,” he said.

Describing Kashi as eternal, the PM said it presented a picture of heritage and development to the country. “Today we are seeing how the results come out when there is a long-term plan. Be it farmers, labourers or traders, everyone is benefiting from this. Business is growing, tourism is expanding,” he said. The far-reaching thinking followed by the people of Banaras is now benefiting the entire region, he added.

(with agency inputs)