TN CM unveils new education policy in response to NEP

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Friday unveiled the state’s new education policy in response to the Centre’s NEP that he considers to be against social justice and aimed at “imposing” Hindi upon the state.

Tamil Nadu, he said, was firm in following the bilingual policy of Tamil and English, and the new state education policy has been framed to make the students future-ready and well equipped, the Chief Minister said at the event.

The policy was deep-rooted in the progressive ideals and was aimed at grooming students to think and ask questions rather than merely learn by memorising.

“We want to provide the necessary energy for future life. We want to create students who are technologically minded, creative, future-ready and well equipped,” Stalin said while speaking at a state-level felicitation for school students and release of the State Education Policy 2025.

Also, it has been proposed to give importance to physical activities, he added.

“Mother tongue Tamil is our identity, our pride. The bilingual policy of Tamil and English will be our firm stand. And I reaffirm this,” Stalin said at the event organised by the school education department.

The CM gave away certificates of appreciation and laptops to the government school students who secured admissions in institutes of higher education.

“It is a great joy to release the Tamil Nadu State School Education Policy 2025. Tamil Nadu has a unique character in everything. There is progressive thinking. Based on that, we have created this education policy with the necessary vision for the future,” he said.

Irrespective of the party that came to power in the state, Tamil Nadu has always been following the two-language policy of Tamil and English since the times of former Chief Minister C N Annadurai.

The state’s language policy and also the politics revolved around the anti-Hindi agitation of 1937 in the then Madras Presidency when the C Rajagopalachari government made Hindi compulsory in schools.

Protests erupted in 1946 and again in 1964-1965 when the Official Languages Act, 1963, made Hindi the sole official language. The 1965 agitation catapulted the DMK to power in 1967 and since then the DMK and AIADMK have been alternating in power. The Congress never managed to recapture power in the state despite its claims of Kamaraj’s golden rule.

Tamil Nadu SEP 2025 outlines a comprehensive, child-centric vision that is inclusive, forward-looking, and deeply anchored in Tamil Nadu’s unique cultural, linguistic, and social heritage. It acknowledges emerging challenges such as digital divides, learning gaps post-COVID, and the need for future-ready skills.

Rooted in Tamil Nadu’s legacy of social justice, it outlines a powerful agenda to ensure educational equity across caste, gender, geography, and ability, and addresses the persistent disparities faced by Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, minorities, children with special needs (CwSN), and first-generation learners, the policy said.

“At its heart, it is a commitment to ensure that every child in Tamil Nadu can learn with dignity, grow with confidence, and thrive in a rapidly changing, interconnected world,” it said.

Tamil Nadu School Education Department administers one of the largest and most decentralised school education systems in India, overseeing a wide network of institutions at multiple stages - from pre-primary to higher secondary - across government, aided, and private managements.