Rise above political differences for interest of students: Dharmendra Pradhan to Tamil Nadu CM

NEW DELHI: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday attacked Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin over the ongoing row on the implementation of NEP and accused him of "spinning progressive reforms into threats to sustain political narratives". In a letter to Stalin, Pradhan said the Tamil Nadu CM should rise above political differences and think about the interests of young learners who will benefit from the new National Education Policy. The education minister was responding to the letter Stalin wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday.

In his letter, Stalin said linking the two centrally sponsored initiatives -- Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and PM SHRI Schools -- with the National Education Policy (NEP) was fundamentally unacceptable. In his letter to the Tamil Nadu CM, Pradhan said, "The letter sent to PM is a complete negation of the spirit of cooperative federalism promoted by Modi government. Hence, it is inappropriate for the state to view NEP 2020 with a myopic vision and spin progressive educational reforms into threats to sustain their political narratives."

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Tamil Nadu and the central government have been at loggerheads over the implementation of NEP in the state, with the DMK government accusing the education ministry of stopping funds for crucial schemes. "The continued opposition to NEP 2020 for political reasons deprives students, teachers, and educational institutions in Tamil Nadu of the immense opportunities and resources that this policy offers. The policy is designed to be flexible, allowing states to customise its implementation to suit their unique educational needs," the minister wrote.

"Moreover, centrally-supported programs such as Samagra Shiksha are aligned with NEP 2020. Also, PM SHRI schools have been conceptualised to be NEP exemplar schools,” he said. On Tamil Nadu’s opposition to the three-language formula, Pradhan clarified that the policy does not advocate the imposition of any language. "Many non-BJP states have implemented the progressive policies of NEP despite political differences. NEP 2020 aims to broaden the horizon, not narrow them. “I would, therefore, request you to rise above political differences and look into the matter holistically keeping in mind the interest of our young learners,” he said.