As part of the celebration of one year of transformative reforms under National Education Policy, 2020, Government of India is organising a series of theme-based webinars on different aspects of National Education Policy, 2020. Indian Knowledge System, Language, Arts & Culture being one of the innovative thrust area of NEP, Indian Knowledge System at AICTE under Ministry of Education organised a National Webinar on Transforming Education in the Light of Indian Knowledge System, Language, Arts & Culture. Union Minister of Education and Skill Development and Employment Dharmendra Pradhan was the Chief Guest on the occasion. Member of Parliament Tejasvi Surya; Secretary, Higher Education Amit Khare Senior officials from Ministry of Education and AICTE were also present.
Dharmendra Pradhan discussed the relevance of traditional knowledge systems & ancient wisdom in contemporary times and their role in the making of an Aatmanirbhar Bharat. He stated that there is a need to synergise knowledge with art, culture, language with a spirit of Bharatiyata.
The Minister said that no society can thrive without connecting to its roots. Our past is filled with examples of architectural grandeur, engineering marvel and artistic excellence, he further added. He called for conservation, promotion and dissemination of this cultural wealth of India should be the top priority of the country because it is crucial for the country’s identity.
Pradhan highlighted that the National Education Policy has laid down a roadmap for 21st century India and lays emphasis on our traditional knowledge systems. By taking Indian knowledge traditions forward, we can sow seeds for starting a new era. We must recreate our traditional knowledge with contemporary, contextual relevance to connect with the youth, he added. Pradhan stated that solutions to many of contemporary challenges lie in our traditional knowledge systems
Amit Khare, Secretary, Higher Education in his address shed light on the formulation and fundamentals of National Education Policy, 2020. Khare said that NEP is the medium to fulfil the aspirations of New India and it will play an important role in realising the Prime Minister’s vision of attaining self-relaince.
Tejasvi Surya expressed his views on the need of new NEP 2020 with respect to Traditional Indian Knowledge in 21st century. He said that Science, Culture, Civilization, Art, various ancient learnings, History etc. are an important part of our glorious tradition and our young generation should we be aware and respect these traditions. He stressed upon value-based education to learners.
Surya also highlighted different aspects of traditional Indian wisdom with respect to NEP 2020 which is being reintroduced in Indian Education. He added that through this NEP 2020, a strong effort is being made to strengthen the departments and institutions of various languages across the country.
The theme wise sessions were conducted followed by the Inaugural Session where the first session of the Webinar was on the theme “Indian Knowledge System” and was addressed by Dr. Shailendra Raj Mehta, President and Director, MICA, Ahmedabad; Dr. A. S. Nene, Board Member, Civil Engg. Dept., Jagatguru Shri Devnath Institute of Vedic Science and Research, Nagpur; Prof. M. D Srinivas,Chairman, Centre for Policy Studies, Chennai.
The second session of the Webinar was on the theme “Languages” and was addressed by Chamu Krishna Shastri, Secretary, Sanskrit Promotion Foundation; Prof. Santosh Kumar Shukla, Dean, School of Sanskrit and Indic Studies, JNU, New Delhi;Dr.Sudha Seshayyan,Vice- Chancellor, The Tamil Nadu Dr. M.G.R Medical University, Chennai.
The third session of the Webinar was on the theme “Arts & Culture” and was addressed by Dr.Sonal Mansingh, Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha, Indian classical dancer and Guru Bharatanatyam and Odissi dancing style; Dr. Anil Joshi, Environmentalist, Green Activist, and the Founder of Himalayan Environmental Studies and Conservation Organization, Dehradun; Dr.Shashibala, Dean, Centre of Indology, Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan, New Delhi.
The Valedictory session was conducted by the concluding remarks of Prof. Anil D. Sahasrabudhe, Chairman, AICTE. He motivated with the thought that the upcoming NEP 2020 by the Ministry of Education is the golden opportunity to awaken the self-respect and self-reliance for all the students.
