The University of Delhi has been in the news lately for passing a resolution about implementing the National Education Policy from 2022 amid protests. The acting VC Dr PC Joshi had said that the professors' dissent was recorded, but the resolution was passed anyway. Since then, many teachers' and students' associations have been protesting against the move but the university has not paid much heed. But the teachers say they are hopeful and will not resort to legal recourse yet.
Dr Rajib Ray, President of the DU Teachers' Association (DUTA) and the Federation of Central Universities’ Teachers’ Associations (FEDCUTA) said that they are hopeful that their voices will be heard. "We will protest. We will voice our concerns and our recommendations. And it is not unprecedented that these issues have not been tended to. The acting VC Dr PC Joshi has assured us that it will not dilute the education system. But we can only see that after it is implemented," said Dr Ray.
The teachers of the university have been vocal about how, in their opinion, the NEP will hamper not only the education of the students by diluting the courses, but will also reduce the role of the teachers to almost nothing. "So-called academic structures like the SWAYAM and ABC Regulations along with the FYUP and its MEES will render degrees meaningless and will impact the future of the youth of the country, especially the underprivileged and marginalised sections of our society. On top of that, with 40 per cent of the credits being earned online, the teachers will be redundant. What will happen to the young ad-hoc teachers or people aspiring to be teachers? This will result in huge job opportunity losses," said Dr Ray and added, "DUTA has never been in favour of legal steps. We have presented our recommendations before and it has been implemented in many cases. We are hopeful that this time too, our voices and concerns will be heard," he said.
The highest decision-making council of DU, the Executive Council (EC), has approved the NEP with a majority for the implementation of the Four-Year Undergraduate Programme (FYUP) with Multi-Entry and Exit System (MEES) from the next academic session 2022-23. Students who will be taking admission in DU from next year will enrol in the FYUP and the new pattern. The students can exit after one year or second year with a certificate and diploma and reenroll after a gap. There will be a credit transfer system that gives the students the option to transfer to any university in India and abroad.
A four-year programme was in place a few years ago in DU and was scrapped soon after. The DUTA is hopeful that the teachers would be able to do the same this time as well. "At that time a lot of parties had also supported us and it had become a poll issue," added Dr Ray. the protests, they said will continue till their voices are heard.
