NEP to boost Indian patents: Ramesh Pokhriyal at Greater Noida's Bennett University

NOIDA: Former Union education minister Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank' on Thursday said the National Education Policy has laid the foundation for students to "stay and study in India". Speaking as chief guest at Bennett University's first literary event - Aalekh 2K23: The Power of Ink, A Carnival of Books - Pokhriyal, who was at the helm of the NEP, said the policy will help achieve the central government's vision of making the Indian education system patent-rich.
"NEP will have far-reaching effects," said the BJP MP, adding feedback from 1,000 universities and suggestions from teachers and gram panchayats from across India had been taken before the policy was prepared. "When I was education minister, I studied educational institutes abroad to figure out why our students are going abroad. I found that our children were in the biggest companies as CEOs and at educational institutes in the US, UK, etc. This proved that our education system was supreme. There was nothing wrong with it. So, I coined the 'stay and study in India' concept, which is the foundation of NEP," Pokhriyal said.
"We are a country that had Taxila and Nalanda as great centres of learning from the time when none existed. It's from us that the world learns about humanity, culture, science, atc, So, it's high time we focus on our roots," he added.
Sharing his thoughts with students about his journey as an author, Pokhriyal said he remained devoted to writing through a busy career in politics. "Writing has been a constant passion throughout my 40-year political career as I vent all my pain, angst and thoughts in my writing," he said. Praising the university's initiative, he added, "It will encourage students to discover the world of literature and develop a lifelong love for reading."
Former LG of Puducherry Kiran Bedi, the guest of honour, underlined the importance of books on one's development, having written many herself. Bedi, who had a trailblazing career as India's first woman IPS officer, also shared her experience of honing her writing skills, which began with a column in a vernacular newspaper, which a friend goaded her to take up. Eventually, she said, consistently documenting events and incidents from life helped her write books. Among other speakers at the event was author and Delhi-based historian Swapna Liddle, who shared insights from her books.
Dr Prabhu Aggarwal, vice-chancellor of BU, lauded the library community of the university for turning Aalekh into a valuable educational programme. He encouraged the youth to continue valuing books, sharing his Sahitya Academy winner aunt Mridula Garg's views that "everyone carries a book within themselves, they just need to bring it out".