NEP anti-poor, says Buxar MP
"The NEP pushes a commercialised model of education. In a state like Bihar, where over a third of households earn less than Rs 6,000 per month, it risks excluding the most vulnerable," said Singh, who chaired the 'Bihar Niti Vimarsh Samvaad' at the AN Sinha Institute.
Singh said despite Bihar allocating over Rs 60,000 crore – 21.7% of its total budget – to education, learning outcomes remain poor.
He criticised central funding mechanisms such as the Higher Education Financing Agency (HEFA) and PM-USHA, which require institutions to repay loans from their own internal revenue.
"Such models will force fee hikes and deepen inequality," Singh said.
Karnataka's higher education minister, M C Sudhakar, shared how his state has adapted elements of the NEP to suit local needs and encouraged Bihar to take a similar approach.
Political leaders including CPI-ML's Dipankar Bhattacharya, Congress MLA Shakeel Ahmad Khan and RJD's Subodh Mehta called for broad-based consultation before implementing the NEP in Bihar. The conference resolved to hold further deliberations on key issues such as vocational education, the digital divide and institutional autonomy in higher education.
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