Team Herald
PANJIM: Amidst apprehensions over soon-to-be implemented National Education Policy (NEP) in the State, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Wednesday said the government will go ahead with the policy after taking into confidence all the concerned institutions. He also allayed apprehensions that government will take over administration of aided and minority-run schools under the NEP.
“All the stakeholders will be taken into confidence before implementation of NEP. We have already started a survey related to infrastructure available across various schools. The (education) department will then decide. The police will only be implemented in foundation course at the initial stage,” he told the House on the maiden day of the Budget session.
The CM said schools have already been asked to submit respective reports on matters in connection with the policy. Simultaneously, discussion is also ongoing at the taluka level, report of which will be submitted to the Education Department.
His reply came in response to a starred question tabled by NCP MLA Churchill Alemao. The NCP MLA, in his supplementary question asked the government whether NEP will take over administrative powers of the aided and Church-run schools, apprehension also supported by Congress MLA Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco. He expressed fear that NEP will usurp into the rights of the institutions run by minority institutions. “How will you protect the interest of minority schools,” Lourenco questioned.
Goa Forward Party MLA Vijai Sardesai, Independent MLA Rohan Khaunte, MGP MLA Ramkrishna ‘Sudin’ Dhavalikar and Congress MLA Luizinho Faleiro also expressed concerns over implementation of the policy during the discussion in the House. “We will implement after taking every institute into confidence,” the CM reiterated.
Sardesai said there is a concept of ‘cluster’ in the NEP while asking the government to not implement the policy in haste. “The schools run by Diocesan Society are worried whether after the cluster, their unique existence would be maintained or it will be diluted. Do not implement the National Education Policy in haste,” he said.
Khaunte alleged that the government has not done impact assessment after implementation of NEP. “When structure is changing, the repercussions should be studied. CM should hold half day or daylong discussion on the NEP in the State Legislative Assembly. The issue is about impact assessment on the existing infrastructure. Everybody will have to start planning in the manner,” he said.
Khaunte’s suggestion was supported by Sudin, who too sought that the issue needs to be discussed comprehensively in the Legislative Assembly. He also expressed fear that unplanned implementation could result in shutting down of institutions.
CM said, “The Cluster issue will be addressed and that district level university has been proposed under the NEP. The new policy will not bulldoze the federal structure. As a part of confidence building measure a presentation will be made before all the MLAs”.
The CM also informed the House about two committees, each of which is headed by MLA Subhash Shirodkar and ex-CM Laxmikant Parsekar. While one provisional report is submitted to the government, another report on the higher education is yet to be completed. “We will take a new review meeting,” the CM said.