national policy on education 1986 PROGRAMME OF ACTION 1992 Government of India Ministry of Human Resource Development Department of Education CONTENTS Pages Acronyms and Abbreviations iii Introduction vii Education for Women's Equality 1 Education of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Sections 7 Minorities' Education 13 Education of the Handicapped 26 Adult and Continuing Education 33 Early Childhood Care And Education 44 Elementary Education 52 Secondary Education 68 Navodaya Vidyalayas 78 Vocational Education 82 Higher Education 96 Open Education 112 Delinking Degrees From Jobs and Manpower Planning 116 Rural Universities and Institutes 119 Technical and Management Education 121 Research and Development 133 The Cultural Perspective 144 Development of Languages 151 Media and Educational Technology 160 Sports, Physical Education and Youth 167 Evaluation Process and Examination Reforms 171 Teachers and Their Training 175 Management of Education 180 Appendix Composition of Steering Committee and Task Forces 192 N.B: (1) These chapters follow the sequence in which NPE, 1986 deals with subjects. Each chapter deals with aspects of 'Content and Process of Education', 'Making the System Work' and management appropriate to it. Therefore, unlike the POA 1986, there are no separate chapters 'Content and Process' and 'Making the System Work'. The chapter 'Management of Education' deals with management aspects which cover the entire field of education or more than one area of education. ii ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS AE Adult Education AEC Adult Education Centre AICTE All India Council of Technical Education ASC Academic Staff College ASCI Administrative Staff College of India BITS Birla Institute of Technology and Science BOAT Boards of Apprenticeship Training BPU Bureau for Promotion of Urdu BRAOU Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Open University CABE Central Advisory Board of Education CBR Community Based Rehabilitation CBSE Central Board of Secondary Education CCRT Centre for Cultural Resources and Training CCE Continuous Comprehensive Evaluation CDC Curriculum Development Centre CDPO Community Development Project Officer CEO Chief Education Officer CIEFL Central Institute of English and Foreign Languages CIET Central Institute of Educational Technology CIIL Central Institute of Indian Languages CIVE Central Institute of Vocational Education CLASS Computer Literacy and Studies in Schools COBSE Council of Boards of Secondary Education COSIST Scheme of Strengthening of Infrastructural Facilities in Science and Technology CSIR Council of Scientific and Industrial Research CSTT Commission for Scientific and Technological Terminology CTE College of Teacher Education CTV Colour Television Set DAE Directorate of Adult Education DGE&T Director-General Employment and Training DIET District Institute of Education and Training DRC District Rehabilitation Centre DRDA District Rural Development Agency DRU District Resource Unit DST Department of Science and Technology DWACRA Development of Women and Children in Rural Areas EB Educationally Backward ECCE Early Childhood Care and Education ECE Early Childhood Education EEO Education Extension Officer EFA Education For All iii EMRC Educational Media Research Centre AVRC Audio Visual Research Centre GVE Generic Vocational Courses HH Hearing Handicap IAMR Institute of Applied Manpower' Research IASE Institute of Advanced Study in Education ICDS Integrated Child Development Science ICHR Indian Council of Historical Research ICMR Indian Council of Medical Research ICSSR Indian Council of Social Science Research IDES Integrated Education for Disabled Children IDS Institute of Development Studies IETE Institute of Electronics and Telecommunications Engineers IGNOU Indira Gandhi National Open University IIM Indian Institute of Management IIT Indian Institute of Technolog INFLIBNET Information and Library Network IPCL Improved Pace and Content of Learning ITI Industrial Training Institutes JCVC Joint Council of Vocational Education JRC Janardhana Reddy Committee JRF Junior Research Fellows JRY Jawahar Rozgar Yojna JSN Jana Shiksha Nilayam KHS Kendriya Hindi Sansthan KOU Kota Open University KVIC Khadi and Village Industries Commission KVK Krishi Vigyan Kendra LM Locomotov Handicap MHRD Ministry of Human Resource Development MIL Modern Indian Languages MIS Management Information System MLL Minimum Levels of Learning MOU Memorandum of Understanding MLA Member of Legislative Assembly MP Member of Parliament MLC Member of Legislative Council NAB National Accreditation Board NCC National Cadet Corps NCERT National Council of Educational Research and Training NCHE National Council of Higher Education NCTE National Council of Teacher Education NEC North Eastern Council NEO National Evaluation Organisation iv NET National Eligibility Test NFE Non-Formal Education NGO Non-Governmental Organisation NIEPA National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration NIHH Al Javar Junj National Institute of Hearing Handicapped NIVH National Institute for the Visually Handicapped NIMH National Institute for the Mentally Handicapped NIOH National Institute for the Orthopaedically Handicapped NLM National Literacy Mission NLMA National Literacy Mission Authority NOS National Open School NPE National Policy on Education NPERC National Policy on Education Review Committee NSS National Service Scheme NTMIS National Technical Manpower Information System NYK Nehru Yuvak Kendra OB Operation Blackboard PC Personal Computer POA Programme of Action RCCP Radio-cum-Cassettee Player RCE Regional College of Education R&D Research and Development RPF Revised Policy Formulations SABE State Advisory Board of Education SAP Special Assistance Programme SC Scheduled Caste ST Scheduled Tribe SCERT State Council of Educational Research and Training SCHE State Council of Higher Education SCVE State Council of Vocational Education SEEUY Self Employment for Educated Unemployed Youth SH Speech Handicap SRC State Resource Centre STEI Secondary Teacher Education Institute SIET State Institute of Educational Technology TLC Total Literacy Campaign TQM Total Quality Management TRYSEM Training for Rural Youth in Self Employment TTTIs Technical Teacher Training Institutes TV Television UEE Universalisation of Elementary Education UGC University Grants Commission UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation v UNICEF United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund UT Union Territory VEC Village Education Committee VH Visual Handicap VRC Vocational Rehabilitation Centre YCMOU Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra Open University vi INTROD0CTION The Revised Policy Formulations (RPF) which set forth the modifications to the National Policy of Education, 1986 (NPE, 1986), were placed in both Houses of Parliament on 7th May, 1992. These modifications were evolved through the same consensual process through which the NPE, 1986 was evolved. In July, 1991, a CABE (Central Advisory Board of Education) Committee on Policy (JRC), under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, and comprising six other Education Ministers belonging to the major political parties and eight educationists, was constituted to review the implementation of the various parameters of the NPE, 1986, taking into consideration the report of the Committee for Review of the NPE (NPERC) and other relevant developments since the Policy was formulated. The JRC, in its report submitted in January, 1992, came tc the conclusion that while very little of the NPE, 1986 required reformulation the Programme of Action (POA) needed to be revised considerably. At its 47th meeting held on 5-6th May 1992, the CABE, the historic forum for forging a national consensus on educational issues, considered the JRC report and formulated the RPF. While replying to the discussion on the RPF in the Rajya Sabha, on 12th May 1992, the Minister of Human Resource Development gave an assurance to present a revised POA (hereafter referred to as POA, 1992) in the Monsoon Session. The POA, 1992 was evolved through the same consensual process through which the Policy was reviewed. Twenty-two task forces were constituted on different subject areas comprising educationists and officials of the Union and State Governments. A Steering Committee was also set up. The composition of the Task Forces and the Steering Committee is given in the Appendix to this document. In spite of the time constraint, the Task Forces and the Steering Committee accomplished their work with great care. The draft Programme of Action was discussed at a Conference of State Secretaries and Directors of Education, held on 3-4 August, 1992. Suggestions received during this meeting were carefully considered and incorporated in the document. The Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) met on 8th August, 1992 and endorsed the document after detailed consideration. The valuable suggestions made by the State Education Ministers and educationists were also taken into account in finalizing this document, The Policy review had established that the policy framework the NPE, 1986 enunciated is robust and can guide the educational development of the country for a long time to come. Likewise, many of the strategies outlined in POA continue to be relevant and should be acted upon. There are, however, many exceptions, the best example of which is adult literacy. The Total Literacy Campaign approach is a post-POA innovation which has emerged as a viable model and has transformed the