Equity and Inclusion in the Indian School System: A Critical Examination of the Draft National Education Policy, 2019

Education is regarded as a prime medium of ensuring vertical mobility both of individuals as well as of Social collectivities. That is why modern social reformers in the Indian subcontinent wanted to spread education among the masses. However, in a society which is marked by institutionalized hierarchy and inequality, it will be too much to expect that education system would sou motto be bereft of these inequalities without any intervention from the state. This is particularly so when everyone is not having the same level of socio-economic and cultural capital when they begin their journey to the process of schooling. Hence the ob of the state is not to provide a level playing field to everyone but to attempt and ensure that every one is provided ample opportunity and facilitation so that at the end of the day everyone is at a level which is almost equal. Even though it is difficult to ensure that every one will be at the same level of educational achievement at the end of the day, such an endeavour itself will be a great harbinger of founding an equitable and inclusive society.