Kerala sprang a surprise last week by signing up for the scheme, Prime Minister Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI), that dovetails the National Education Policy (NEP)-2020, to upgrade and brand 14,500 schools nationwide as model institutions. Kerala, one of the three States to oppose the NEP-2020 (the others being Tamil Nadu and West Bengal), on the contention that it sought to encroach on the subject of school education, which is in the Concurrent List, and infuse it with communal bias and anti-scientific content, was evidently looking to gain central funds. Earlier this year, Tamil Nadu had approached the Supreme Court of India after the Centre withheld funds under the Samagra Shiksha (SS) scheme over the State’s refusal to adopt the NEP-PM SHRI framework. Kerala’s agreement on adopting the scheme is now in freeze after strife within the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) soon after the government signed the PM SHRI Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Centre, without Cabinet approval — an issue deferred twice in Cabinet meetings. The CPI, a key LDF partner, demanded an immediate withdrawal. The CPI(M), which holds the general education portfolio, initially defended the decision, arguing that enrolment in PM SHRI was necessary to avail of federal funds withheld under the SS, which had led to salary arrears for teachers and non-teaching staff. The CPI(M) clarified that Kerala remained opposed to the NEP-2020 and would retain control over its school curriculum. The allies reached a détente on Wednesday — a cabinet subcommittee will scrutinise the MoU. Implementation of PM SHRI will remain suspended until the subcommittee’s recommendation. The Centre will be formally informed of this decision.
Kerala has long excelled in school education, achieving near-universal gross enrolment ratio, high retention rates, superior learning outcomes, and modern infrastructure — milestones that render many NEP-2020 targets redundant in the State. For Kerala, PM SHRI amounts to little more than cosmetic rebranding of already high-performing institutions, but the State would be forced to comply with provisions of the NEP-2020 for integration of ‘Indian Knowledge Systems’, which many reckon is a euphemism for pseudoscience. It is regrettable that the Centre withholds federal funds under the SS to arm-twist States into accepting NEP-2020 or PM SHRI. While Tamil Nadu has pursued legal redress, its case has not received the judicial urgency it warrants. In India’s federal polity, the judiciary must robustly defend cooperative federalism whenever it is undermined. As Kerala pauses PM SHRI, it must consider litigation to secure its rightful share of central funds. Federalism and State autonomy cannot be bargaining points in the quest for funds.
Published – October 30, 2025 12:10 am IST
