Thoughts on NEP2020

The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 is a groundbreaking document that outlines the vision and plans of the Government of India for the education sector in the country. It aims to provide universal access to quality education, with a particular focus on marginalized and disadvantaged groups, and to ensure that all learners have the knowledge and skills needed to thrive in the 21st century.

One of the key goals of the NEP 2020 is to reform and revitalize the education system in India. This includes addressing issues of access, equity, and quality, which have long been a concern in the Indian education system. The NEP 2020 aims to make education more inclusive and flexible, with a greater focus on experiential and hands-on learning. It also emphasizes the importance of making education more learner-centered, with a greater emphasis on critical thinking and problem-solving skills.

Another important aspect of the NEP 2020 is the promotion of multilingualism and the use of Indian languages in education. The policy recognizes the importance of preserving and promoting the linguistic diversity of India, and aims to make the study of Indian languages more widespread and accessible. This is seen as crucial for the development of a more inclusive and harmonious society.

In addition to these goals, the NEP 2020 also emphasizes the importance of collaboration and partnerships in the education sector. It encourages greater collaboration between different stakeholders, including schools, colleges, universities, and government agencies, as well as between different sectors of society. This is seen as essential for the successful implementation of the NEP 2020 and for the overall development of the education system in India.=

Overall, the NEP 2020 is a bold and ambitious policy that seeks to bring about significant changes to the education system in India. If implemented effectively, it has the potential to bring about significant improvements in access, equity, and quality in education, and to help ensure that all learners have the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in the 21st century.

 

Trip to Masinagudi

Being locked up at our homes due to COVID, was gradually taking a toll on us. So we decided to do quite a few road trips. The first one was with my parents and friend on a day trip to Srirangapatna and Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary in November which was followed by a weekend trip to Hampi in December 2020. Now that we got into 2021, and with the new beast I was getting restless to get on road. So, it started with a half day road trip with family to Kailashgiri, followed by a trip to Masinagudi at end of Feburary 2021. Masinagudi is part of Mudumalai National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu.
The Mudumalai National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary is a declared tiger reserve, lies on the northwestern side of the Nilgiri Hills (Blue Mountains), in Nilgiri District, about 260 km from Whitefiled, Bangalore in Tamil Nadu, India. It shares its boundaries with the states of Karnataka and Kerala. The sanctuary is divided into five ranges – Masinagudi, Thepakadu, Mudumalai, Kargudi and Nellakota.
We reseved Jungle Hut at Bokkapurum. This resort is just outside Mudumalai National Park. Initially, we reserved through booking.com and then they asked us to reserve directly. Reserving directly, you can get the discoutns they offer. Shruti from Jungle Hut, helped in finalizing the dates and select the rooms. Post booking she reminded us to get the e-pass fot Tamil Nadu as we were coming from Karnataka.
On the day that's 26th Feb, we started early morning. The route was preety simple, Bangalore - Mysore (stop for breakfast) - Bandipur National Park - Mudumalai National Park - Bokkapuram (287 km from home to the resort), a 7 hr journey.

The road to Mysore is under expansion, so lot of diversions and you just cannot drive fast. Once you cross Mysore, the road to Masinagudi is just wonderful. We took a break at CCD, near Mandya.

Once you enter Bandipur forest area you are not allowed to stop for photography. The Junlge is so beautiful that you just cannot drive fast, we drove as slowly as possible to enjoy the beauty. Exiting Bandipur and entering Mudumalai, you need to show your e-pass to the officials at checkpost. They see that with the ID card that was mentioned in the e-pass, once validated, pay the entry fee of Rs. 20 and you are allowed to go. Once inside the forest, there is no checking.
After we reached Jungle Hut, the checking was simple and breeze, you are escorted by the owners to your cottage and they explain you everything. They would also introduce you to the staff and its like feel at home. The resort is blended with the jungle outskirts, so animals roam in freely. We were greeted by deers and in evening had lot of monkeys in the campus. Here are some pictures of the resort.

Day one was walking in the resort and sorroundings.

Next day, we got up around 5 am, as it was all action packed. We started with goverment jungle safari, followed by 2hr Jungle Walk with our resort guide Rajesh, and again in the evening private main road jungle safari.
We started in the morning in our beast and drove till the Tamil Nadu Goverment's safari point. Took a jeep safari, for four of us. The safari costed us Rs. 4200 for the jeep with its driver (no guide were provided), and Rs. 130 per head.

The driver took us around the jungle for an hour, with 2 stops, he didnt bother to explain anything or even idetify the route. The junlge was covered with thick and heavy fog. At one point we felt that our resort got more animals than the forest. Here are some pictures from the forest safari.

Post our jungle safari we went to Elephant Camp to watch mahuts feeding the elephants. It was painful to see the elephants chained as they were fed by the respective mahuts. From the Elephant camp we came back to our resort for breakfast. Post breakfast we decided to go for the Junlge walk. The sun was already up, but it was fun going out with Rajesh, our resort guide. The walk though tiered us to the core, was very informative. Would recommend to have at least one walk. Here are some snaps.

After the jungle walk we all were exhausted and hungry. So got freshened up, and went for lunch. As usual the lunch was fantastic. We quickly retired and had a short nap. Again by 4 pm in the evening got ready for our main road safari. Rajesh accompanied us in the trip, and he ensured we enjoyed it to the core. Through we couldnt see any wild elephant, or tigers but we did hear some calls.

Next day was time to drive back home. We checked out from Jungle Hut around 10 am. On the way back stopped at Radission Blue, Mysore for lunch. Unfortunately the resturant where we wanted to dine in was closed, so had out buffet and hit back road. This time we took the parallel road which came through Kanapkura. Except some patches most of the road was good, newly laid. We reached back home by 6 pm. Masinagudi would again be on my list.

It's time to plan for a longer road trip. Something should come up in April.