The Kerala government has delivered a resounding ‘no’ to the University Grants Commission’s (UGC) ambitious new proposal, the Learning Outcome-Based Curriculum Framework (LOCF).
In a direct communication to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and UGC Chairperson Vineet Joshi, Kerala’s Higher Education Minister, Dr. R. Bindu, declared that the draft curriculum, in its current iteration, simply would not be adopted in the state. She underscored significant reservations spanning academic substance, structural coherence, and the ideological slant embedded within the proposed framework.
This firm stance by the state follows an exhaustive review by an expert committee, specially appointed to scrutinize the UGC’s document. The committee’s findings were unequivocal: the framework lacked the necessary academic rigor and failed to resonate with India’s diverse social and educational realities.
Dr. Bindu articulated her concerns sharply in her letter, stating, ‘The draft curriculum brazenly violates the autonomy of universities by dictating syllabi, course structures, and even reading lists. This overreach, in our view, extends far beyond the constitutional mandate of the UGC.’
Further criticizing the framework, Minister Bindu pointed out that it appeared to impose ‘Western models’ and included ‘ideologically driven insertions.’ She specifically highlighted the presence of ‘divisive content masquerading under the banner of Indian Knowledge Systems.’ These elements, she argued, collectively render the framework ‘outdated and academically unsound.’
Emphasizing that such a curriculum would ‘undermine the very objectives of a critical, creative, and pluralistic higher education system,’ Dr. Bindu urged the UGC to retract the draft and embark on a fundamental revision of the entire framework.
She stressed the crucial need for genuine and extensive consultations involving state governments, universities, and the wider academic community before any national-level curriculum is finalized.
The expert committee, formed by the Kerala State Higher Education Council and ably led by economist Prabhat Patnaik with council vice-chairperson Rajan Gurukkal as co-chair, played a pivotal role in this decision. Their comprehensive report has been submitted to both the Union Minister and the UGC chairperson for their urgent consideration.