Shillong, April 1: Meghalaya student Shilla Bishnab on Friday posed a question on the National Education Policy (NEP) to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the interactive education programme ‘Pariksha Pe Charcha (PPC) 2022’.

Representing the State at the national platform, the Class IX Student from Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV), Mawphlang presented her question on New Education Policy and how it will empower the society in general, and students’ lives in particular, and how it will pave the way for ‘Naya Bharat’.

Responding to the question, PM Modi said, “Consultation for National Education Policy has been exhaustive. People across India were consulted on this.”

A Teacher from Haryana also posed the same question and responding to the queries, PM Modi said that it is a ‘National’ Education Policy and not a ‘New’ Education Policy. He said the policy was drafted after a lot of brainstorming with various stakeholders.

The Prime Minister continued that the policy was made not by the Government but by the citizens, the students, and teachers for the development of the country. He further added that the NEP was an opportunity to follow one’s passion. He stressed the importance of skills along with knowledge. He also underlined the flexibility provided by NEP in the choice of subjects. He said proper implementation of NEP will open new venues and urged schools all over the country to find new ways to implement the new technologies invented by the Students.

Governor of Meghalaya Satya Pal Malik, students and teachers of JNV Mawphlang participated in the programme from Raj Bhawan in Shillong. The Governor expressed his pride in the representation of the State by the JNV Student, Shilla Bishnab. “I am proud that a student from Meghalaya got to present her question to the Prime Minister. The PM also answered the questions very well,” he said.

JNV Teacher, Priyanka termed ‘Pariksha Pe Charcha’ as an innovative way of the Prime Minister to get in touch with the students and the whole education system of India. “Our Student got the chance to ask a question to the PM. I am very happy to see that. I feel this way our students will have a positive attitude towards their exams,” said the Teacher.

Shilla Bishnab feels fortunate that she could ask a question to the Prime Minister and is content with the answer. “It was a very exciting and joyful moment for me. His answer was that students could choose their own paths if they were not happy with their chosen ones,” said the Student.

In the 5th edition of Pariksha Pe Charcha, the Prime Minister interacted with students, teachers and parents on Friday at Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi. He inspected the exhibits of the students showcased at the venue before the interaction. Union Ministers Dharmendra Pradhan, Annpurna Devi, Dr. Subhas Sarkar, Dr. Rajkumar Ranjan Singh and Rajeev Chandrasekhar along with virtual participation of Governors and Chief Ministers, teachers, students and parents, were present on the occasion. The Prime Minister maintained an interactive, jovial and conversational tone throughout the interaction.

#ParikshaPeCharcha with my young friends. https://t.co/VYwDO6PLLz

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) April 1, 2022

Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister expressed his happiness for addressing his young friends after the virtual interaction last year. He said that PPC is his favourite programme. He noted the start of Vikram Samvat new year from Saturday and also greeted the students for many upcoming festivals. The Prime Minister introduced a new practice in the 5th edition of PPC. He said that questions that could not be taken by him will be addressed through video, audio or text message on the Namo App.

Other than Shilla Bishanb, the students and teachers who interacted and posed questions to PM Modi include Khushi Jain of Delhi, Kini Patel of Vadodara, Tarun of Mysuru, Karnataka, Shahid Ali of Delhi, Keerthana of Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala and a teacher Chandrachudeshwaran of Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu, Roshini of Ghaziabad, UP, Kiran Preet Kaur of Bhatinda, Punjab, Vaibhav Kannaujia of Delhi, Sujit Kumar Pradhan, a parent from Odisha, Komal Sharma of Jaipur, Aron Eben of Doha, Anusha of Khammam, Telangana, Gayatri Saxena, Shweta Kumari of Jharkhand, Erica George of Udhampur, Jammu & Kashmir, Hair Om Mishra of Gautam Budh Nagar, Seema Chetan Desai – a parent – of Navsari, Gujarat, Pavitra Rao of Delhi.

In the end, the Prime Minister called the students who conducted the programme and lauded them for their skills and confidence. He reiterated the need to develop the capability to appreciate qualities in others and learn from them. We should have a tendency to learn instead of jealousy. This capability is important for success in life.

He concluded on a personal note by acknowledging the importance of PPC for him. He said that he feels 50 years younger when he is interacting with young students. “I try to learn from you by associating with your generation. As I connect with you I get the glimpse of your aspirations and dreams and try to mould my life accordingly. Therefore this programme is helping me grow. I thank you all for giving me time to help myself and grow,” concluded a visibly elated Prime Minister.