'Education, skilling have equal emphasis under new NEP', says PM Modi

The new National Education Policy (NEP) has reoriented and placed emphasis on both education and skilling according to the aptitude and demands of the youngsters, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a post-budget webinar on Saturday. 

Addressing the webinar 'Harnessing Youth Power- Skilling and Education', the PM Modi lamented on the lack of flexibility in the education system over the years and said that the sector has been "rigid".

"Education and skilling have been reoriented according to the aptitude of the youngsters and demands of the future. Equal emphasis is being given to both education and skilling as part of the NEP. The move encourages the government to undertake further reforms in the education and skilling sectors while unburdening our students from the regulations of the past", the prime minister said. 

Learning from the experiences of the pandemic, Modi said that the government is creating futuristic tools along the lines of 'anywhere access to knowledge' that will open the door for new opportunities and reduce the gap between village and city schools. 

"The government is focusing on tools that ensure anywhere access to knowledge. Now, the role of our teachers will not be limited only to the classroom. More varieties of teaching material will be available to our educational institutions all over the country, which will open new doors of opportunities for the teachers while filling the gap between village and city schools", he added. 

Throwing light on the role of apprenticeships in making the youth future ready, he highlighted the central government's efforts to ensure "outside-the-classroom exposure" for youngsters like providing a stipend to around 50 lakh youth under the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) and creating a National Internship Portal. 

"The focus is on creating a skilled workforce for industry 4.0 sectors, such as AI (artificial intelligence), robotics, IoT and drones, thereby making it easier for international investors to scout talent, without having to spend much energy and resources on re-skilling," he said.

Modi also highlighted the importance of the role and partnership of academia and industry in bringing rapid changes in the country's education sector.

"Research will be made possible according to the needs of the market while also creating room for adequate funding from the research industry. The private sector should take maximum advantage of every such step to strengthen the research and development ecosystem in the country," he said.