Published Paper Details:

The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, which was introduced in India, has been widely discussed and debated since its release. The primary focus of the paper lies in the breakdown of India's recent "revolutionary" education policy in the context of Higher Education. This paper presents a critical postcolonial analysis of the NEP 2020, which examines the policy's implications on the education system in India from a decolonial lens. Through the lens of postcolonial theory, this paper analyzes the NEP 2020's underlying assumptions, values, and ideologies that are rooted in colonial history and perpetuate hegemonic power structures. The paper questions the legitimacy of policy's claims to raise the acquirers of education as pillars of Indian rich culture and heritage, and weigh the possibility of this desired outcome. The paper argues that the NEP 2020, despite its progressive rhetoric, perpetuates colonial patterns of knowledge production, and social hierarchies. This paper also highlights the need to decolonize the education system and rethink the role of education in postcolonial India. The article throws light on the works of post-colonial theorists namely, Gayatri Spivak, Homi K. Bhabha and Edward Said to examine critically the provisions of the policy through a post-colonial bent of mind. The analysis draws upon a variety of sources, including primary and secondary literature, government documents, and media reports. The findings of this study can be used to inform policy-makers, educators, and scholars to critically examine the NEP 2020 and to develop more inclusive and equitable educational policies.