Guwahati News Desk: The state government on Saturday, issued an order stating that the implementation of NEP-2020 will come into effect from the current academic year 2021-2022.
Dr CN Ashwath Narayana said, “With this Karnataka has become the first state in the nation to issue the order with regard to implementation of NEP-2020.”
He added that the implementation will be done as per the guidelines of the NEP.
Regarding the NEP-2020 policy, it seeks to entirely overhaul the system through various reforms, including – A single regulator to oversee higher education; no more MPhil courses before PhD; fixed fees for public and private institutions; students can choose between three and four-year undergraduate courses; multiple entry and exit points in degree courses. It also aims at increasing the Gross Enrolment Ratio in higher education including vocational education from 26.3 per cent in 2018 to 50 per cent by 2035 and further aims to add 3.5 crore new seats to higher education institutions.
Appreciating the policy Meera L. B. Aranha, Professor & Chairperson – Banking and Financial Services, T A Pai Management Institute, Manipal had earlier said, âStatistics indicate that even though the percentage of school dropouts is on the decline, at the secondary level it is still around 17.5 per cent. It is also high at the higher education level. Students are forced to take a break from studies due to financial and medical issues in family. Such students now will be able to get a certificate of completion for the number of years they have studied and also have the option to return to their learning and start from where they had left off.”
Meanwhile, Kumar Nayak, Additional chief secretary to higher education, Thimmegowda vice-chairman Karnataka higher education council, and other senior officials were also present at the meeting held on Saturday, that was convened by Narayana with officials of the department and state higher education council.