Vice President Dhankhar Calls NEP ‘Game Changer’, States Not Adopting Policy Should ‘Rethink’

New Delhi: Calling National Education Policy (NEP), a “game changer”, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar urged those states not in the favour of implementing it to “rethink”. 

Addressing the International Literacy Day celebrations, Dhankar cautioned against people who taint, tarnish and demean India's institutions and urged people to show light to those "misguided souls" not able to acknowledge the impressive growth of the country.

Vice President Remarks 

"Education is something that no thief can take away from you. No government can snatch it from you. Neither relatives nor friends can take it away from you. There can be no reduction in it. It will grow and continue to grow as long as you keep sharing it. If literacy is pursued passionately, India can reclaim its ancient status as a centre of learning, like Nalanda and Takshashila," Dhankar said.

"This National Education Policy empowers our youth to fully exploit their talent and energy, giving due importance to all languages," he said.

The vice-president said it was time "for us to be in mission mode" with commitment and passion to ensure 100 per cent literacy at the earliest.

India Has Unparalleled Linguistic Diversity

"There is no country in the world like India. We are a unique nation when it comes to the richness of language, with several languages," Rajya Sabha Chairman said. 

Reflecting on his experience as Rajya Sabha chairman, VP Dhankhar said, "I afford members the opportunity to speak in 22 languages. When I hear them speak in their language, I listen to the translation but their body language itself tells me what they are saying."

 Dhankhar also called upon everyone to resolve to make at least one person literate.

"When we make someone literate, we liberate him or her, we help that person discover himself or herself, we make him or her feel dignity, we cut down dependence, we generate independence and interdependence. It enables a person to help himself or herself. It is a supreme facet of hand-holding," he said.

National Education Policy 2020

The NEP 2020 is founded on the five guiding pillars of Access, Equity, Quality, Affordability and Accountability. It will prepare our youth to meet the diverse national and global challenges of the present and the future.