Tamil Nadu HEIs facing Centre's heat over NEP student ambassadors
Recently, the Ministry, through the State government, also asked all the HEIs in the State to upload the activities of students who were appointed as NEP ambassadors.;
Representative image
CHENNAI: The higher educational institutions (HEIs) in Tamil Nadu are once again facing the heat from the Centre — this time over appointing student ambassadors to promote the National Education Policy (NEP) on the campus.
It was in 2023 that the Ministry of Education urged all Vice-Chancellors, directors and principals of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to nominate three students from their institutions to be considered as NEP SAARTHIs. However, caught in the crossfire between the State government and the Centre over NEP implementation, many government institutions here have not made any move in appointing student ambassadors.
Recently, the Ministry, through the State government, also asked all the HEIs in the State to upload the activities of students who were appointed as NEP ambassadors. Based on the activities, the HEIs will be assessed by the authorities concerned in the Ministry of Higher Education.
Expressing serious concern over the spat between the State government and the Centre over the implementation of NEP, former Anna University Vice-Chancellor E Balagurusamy said it is really unfortunate that the State and the union government are at loggerheads in this regard. "Without allocation of funds by the Centre it is practically impossible to implement NEP," he added.
K Venkat Narayanan, a retired professor and educationist in the city said HEIs alone cannot "fight" the Centre in connection with NEP without the help of the State government. "The State should also give a clear picture and come up with detailed information on all aspects that could be accepted in NEP," he said. "Otherwise, the government should immediately implement State Education Policy, which was derived long back from the expert committee."
As per the latest statistics from the Minister of Education, states like Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra have already appointed student ambassadors and sent the list to the Centre.