Meeting of all MPs on Nov 10 on National Education Policy: Javadekar

All stakeholders in sector urged to give suggestions in making the policy; minister says he has held talks with students and teachers

The HRD ministry has convened a meeting of all MPs on November 10 to elicit their opinions and suggestions on formulating the National Education Policy, as the subject is a national agenda and not a political one, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said here today.

"All stakeholders in the education sector should give suggestions to make the policy. I have already held discussions with students and teachers about the problem in the system," he said, while inaugurating a seminar on "innovating India's schooling' organised by Isha Foundation' here.

Javadekar said that as part of the exercise, he had convened a meeting with MPs of various parties on November 10, "as education is a national agenda and not a political agenda, to shape the future generation."

The NEP has five pillars of accessibility, equity, quality, affordability and over all accountability, he said.

Javadekar rued that though India has achieved and expanded education for the last 70 years, it was yet to achieve quality education to reach 70 million students of KG to PG standards and added that the erstwhile British rulers has tailored education to create manpower for their requirements.

Isha Foundation founder Jaggi Vasudev said India's education system was largely a remnant of the colonial agenda.

"We have done small changes, but not rethought of education. Since India is home to the one-fifth of the world's population education is of supreme importance," he said.