Bengaluru, Sep 15 (UNI) Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Wednesday said the state government is ready to have a debate on NEP 2020 with an open mind and nobody should get anxious about it.
"The government is ready to deliberate on the New Education Policy (NEP) with an open mind. We will make students understand that NEP is a revolutionary step and good for the future of the youth. Therefore, nobody should be anxious about NEP," he told reporters after paying tributes to Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya's statue on the occasion of Engineers's Day celebrations.
He was replying to a query on police lathicharge on students protesting against NEP on Tuesday. Campus Front of India (CFI) had spearheaded the protest.
The police lathicharge the students after they started to march onto the middle of the road that resulted in heavy traffic jam at ever-busy road leading to Majestic.
The students were carrying placards conveying the message that the NEP breaks the unity in diversity and encourages commercialisation of education.
Taking to Twitter today, former chief minister Siddaramaiah condemned the lathicharge on students and demanded an apology from Bommai.
"I condemn the lathicharge on students in Bengaluru for protesting against the implementation of New National Education Policy. Basavaraj Bommai should immediately withdraw NEP and apologise to the students," he tweeted.
The NEP was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi government last August.
According to the PM, the NEP promises to provide students various avenues to upskill and train themselves for jobs and vocations in India.
It also promises to teach students coding in schools from Class 6 onwards to equip them with the skills required to succeed in the 21st century.
The new policy also gives students the flexibility to choose subjects from both Science and Humanities, which will bring the Indian education system on par with the rest of the world.
It also ensures that students grasp at least one vocational skill by the end of their education so that they are job ready in the market.
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