New Education Policy 2020 likely to curtail VCI authority

Pashu Sandesh, 10th August 2020

India's new education policy 2020 has been approved by the cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 29 July. The former chairman of ISRO has prepared the draft of new education policy. The team of experts, headed by Kasturirangan had the challenge to prepare the draft which included everything from pre-primary to professional education. Let us know what would be the effect of this new education policy on the Veterinary Council (VCI), the regulatory body of Veterinary Education in the country.

According to what we understood after reading the New Education Policy 2020, VCI's power to regulate Veterinary Education will end after the implementation of the new education policy. 

As far as the field of education is concerned, professional councils like VCI, ICAR will become more of an academic standard drafting bodies, which would be known as Professional Standard-Setting Bodies (PSSB) in the new education policy. These institutes will create academic standards for courses in their domain, but they will not have regulatory powers. If we dwell in more depth, it seems that the academic standards created by the VCI will serve as a reference according to which the Veterinary College and University will be able to create their own syllabus. That is, in the new education policy, there is a possibility of more autonomy for the college and university.

Currently, VCI has two major mandates, the first regulation of minimum standards of veterinary education and the second regulation of minimum standards of veterinary practice. Of these two mandates, the formulation of minimum standards of veterinary practice has not yet been established and thus not much control of VCI on these matters. Now the regulation of minimum standards of veterinary education in the new education policy will also be taken over from the jurisdiction of the VCI to the single point regulator which is the National Higher Education Regulatory Council. In such a situation, the importance of VCI is set to decrease. However, an Act has to be passed in the parliament for the decision to be implemented on VCI. 

According to the new education policy, a Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) will be set up at the national level. Four different institutions will work under HECI for the four domains of Higher Education - Regulation, Accreditation, Funding and Academic Standards Setting. For example, as per ICAR Regulation, Accreditation, Funding and Academic Standard are all looked after by ICAR and VCI does both VCI Regulation and Academic Standard-Setting work. 

This will not happen after the implementation of the new education policy. Four different institutions set up at the national level under HECI will do the above-mentioned work. 

1. National Higher Education Regulatory Council (NHERC) - This institution will be reduced to a single point regulator, which will regulate all types of education except medical and law education. In the new education policy, the regulation work will be done through accreditation.

2. National Accreditation Council (NAC) - This institution will undertake the Accreditation of Higher Educational Institutions. The Supervision of NAC will have accreditation institutes which will undertake the Accreditation of Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs). Educational institutions will receive funding based on their accreditation.

3.Higher Education Grants Council (HEGC) - This institution will fund higher educational institutions like UGC currently does.

4. General Education Council (GEC) - This institution will undertake academic standard-setting, learning output in various domains.

Professional councils like ICAR, VCI, NCTE, CoA, NCVET will work with GEC as professional standard-setting bodies (PPSSB). The above professional councils will continue as a member of GEC to create academic standards in their respective domains, but they will not have regulatory power.

It will take some time for the implementation of the new education policy in 2020. This new education policy will take shape on the ground only after the establishment/reorganisation of the institutions related to it and related legal amendments.