NEP 2020 a well-planned roadmap to nurture young talent, says President Ram Nath Kovind
Kasaragod, Dec 21: The National Education Policy (NEP) of 2020 is a well-planned roadmap to develop an ecosystem that will nurture the talent of the country's young generation, President Ram Nath Kovind said on Tuesday.
Delivering his speech at the 5th Convocation of the Central University of Kerala at the Periya campus here, Kovind said the NEP aims to prepare the students for the world of tomorrow, while also equipping them with the best of India's own traditions.
"India is, after all, the land of Nalanda and Takshshila, of Aryabhata, Bhaskaracharya and Panini. Gandhiji compared the indigenous educational system with a beautiful tree that perished under colonialism. An effort is being made to rediscover its best aspects so that India makes a contribution to the world that it alone is destined to make," Kovind said.
The President said the most outstanding feature of the NEP is that it aims to promote both inclusion and excellence.
Kovind said through its varied curriculum, NEP promotes liberal as well as professional education, because each stream of knowledge has a role to play in society and in nation-building.
"That way, the NEP can become instrumental for India to harness and reap the demographic dividend," he added.
He said the country's growing population makes it "incumbent upon us to nurture the next generation talent." "When the younger generation is provided with skills and knowledge required for success in the world of the twenty-first century, they can do miracles," he said.
Praising Kerala, Kovind said it has led the other states on critical parameters of literacy and education, enabling it to be a leading state on several other parameters of excellence too.
The President also pointed out that the Union Government has recommended names of three cities from the entire country for being listed in UNESCO's Global Network of Learning and two of them are from Kerala.
"These two cities are Thrissur and Nilambur. Being part of this Global Network supports the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, especially the goal of ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting life-long learning opportunities for all," he said.
He said as far as gender equity is concerned, Kerala not only has favourable sex ratio, but has also been at the forefront of women empowerment.
"I am not surprised at all that all the three gold medal winners in today's convocation happen to be our daughters. I am also glad to note that the number of daughters who have received degrees is nearly thrice the number of boys. I have been told that our daughters constitute 64 per cent of the total number of students in the university," he said.
He said he has been observing the growing empowerment of women through education in other parts of the country also.
"In this empowerment-through-education of our daughters, I see the India of the future which will become a knowledge power with rich contribution from our daughters," Kovind said.
Kovind handed over gold medals to three graduates.
Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan and State Local Self Government and Excise Minister M V Govindan also attended the event.
After the event, the President flew to Kochi and was welcomed by government officials.
Kovind is accompanied by his wife Savitha Kovind and daughter Swathi. The first family will stay at the Taj Malabar resort.
The President will witness the operational demonstration of the naval officers of the Southern Naval Command on Wednesday. He will also visit IAC Vikrant.
The President will leave for Thiruvananthapuram on December 23 to take part in various programmes there and will return to New Delhi on December 24.
Earlier in the day, Kasaragod MP and Congress leader Rajmohan Unnithan and Udma MLA and Left leader C K Kunhambu voiced their protest against the CUK for not inviting them for the function and said it was a protocol violation.
Unnithan said not inviting him for the convocation, even though he represents the area in Parliament, is a breach of protocol.
"Without following any protocol, the event has been turned into a completely saffronised event involving only BJP representatives. This is objectionable and completely undemocratic," the Kasaragod MP said.
Kunhambu has written to the Vice Chancellor of the University expressing displeasure over not being invited to the programme scheduled to be held in his Udma assembly constituency.
"I was not informed about the event to be attended by the President, in the district," he told PTI.
However, university authorities said the decision on the invitees was taken by the security and protocol officers.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Epstein files vanish from US Justice Department website hours after release
Washington: Several documents linked to late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein disappeared from the US Justice Department’s public website within a day of being uploaded, triggering political reactions and renewed demands for transparency.
At least 16 files that appeared online on Friday were no longer accessible by Saturday. Among the missing material was an image that included a photograph showing US President Donald Trump with Epstein, Melania Trump and Ghislaine Maxwell. The image was part of a larger photograph depicting framed pictures placed on furniture and inside drawers, alongside images of artwork featuring nude women.
The Justice Department has not clarified whether the files were removed intentionally or due to an error. No official explanation has been issued and a department spokesperson did not respond to media queries.
Democrats on the House Oversight Committee drew attention to the missing Trump image in a post on X. They asked what else might have been removed and called for public accountability.
According to an India Today report, the document release, which ran into thousands of pages, included references to several prominent individuals, including former US President Bill Clinton. Notably, Trump’s name appeared rarely in the written records, despite earlier disclosures that had linked him to Epstein socially. Trump has denied any involvement in Epstein’s crimes and has not been accused of wrongdoing.
His absence from much of the newly released material stood out, particularly because his name appeared in Epstein’s private jet flight logs made public by the Justice Department earlier this year.
Several documents which were expected by survivors and lawmakers did not feature in the release. These included FBI interviews with victims and internal Justice Department records explaining why Epstein was not federally prosecuted in the mid-2000s, when he instead secured a plea deal on lesser state charges.
Other figures long associated with Epstein, including Britain’s former Prince Andrew, were also mentioned sparingly, leading to further questions about the scope of scrutiny applied.
The released files did include some new elements, such as a 1996 complaint accusing Epstein of stealing photographs of children and documents outlining how federal prosecutors retreated from pursuing sex trafficking charges. However, much of the material consisted of photographs of Epstein’s properties in New York and the US Virgin Islands, along with scattered images involving celebrities and political figures.
Many of the documents were heavily redacted or provided little context. One file labelled “Grand Jury-NY,” running 119 pages, was entirely blacked out. Prosecutors have acknowledged that millions of pages of records exist from investigations into Epstein and Maxwell, far more than what has been made public so far.
