'Greatest disservice to children': Bommai as Siddaramaiah announces scrapping of NEP in Karnataka

A day after Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced that the National Education Policy (NEP) will be scrapped in the state from the next academic year, former CM Basavaraj Bommai on Tuesday said the move will be a disservice to the children. Bommai appealed to the chief minister to reconsider his decision to scrap NEP. 

The NEP draft brought out by the Centre was approved by Siddaramaiah during his previous tenure, the BJP leader told the news agency PTI. He said former ISRO chief and ex-Karnataka Knowledge Commission chairman K Kasturirangan was appointed by the central government as the chief of the task force to prepare a new education policy. 

"When this being the case, for mere petty political reasons, Siddaramaiah wants to bring in a new system (of education). It's detrimental to the future of children of Karnataka," the former chief minister said. Bommai further said that the NEP is the most progressive legislation as far as education is concerned and the Congress government is undoing this. "This is the greatest disservice to the children of Karnataka," he said. 

On Monday, Siddaramaiah said the NEP will be scrapped in the state from the next academic year. He said his government by scrapping the NEP will try to provide education in accordance with the Constitution. "NEP was implemented in Karnataka when it was not introduced in any other BJP-ruled states...I want to tell one thing, this year there was a bit of delay, from the next year onwards we will change the NEP and will try to provide education in accordance with the Constitution," Siddaramaiah said. 

The chief minister said that the NEP has to be scrapped after making necessary preparations, and as the academic year had begun by the time the election results were out and the government was formed, it has been continued this year, to avoid inconvenience to students in the middle of the year. 

Siddaramaiah alleged that the BJP had sacrificed the interest of students by implementing NEP in Karnataka even before other states implemented it. He said the NEP has been opposed by students, parents and lecturers, and teachers. 

Karnataka became the first to adopt NEP in higher education in August 2021. The Congress then in opposition had criticised the NEP. In its manifesto, the grand old party had promised to scrap the NEP. During the recent budget, the chief minister had said that it will be replaced by a state education policy (SEP).

(With inputs from PTI)