New Delhi: After the removal of ‘Mandarin’ or Chinese language from the list of foreign languages included in the newly announced National Education Policy (NEP) by the Government of India, China has claimed that the move will affect bilateral relations between the two countries.
The Chinese side termed the move as ‘dangerous’, stating that cultural exchanges are the cornerstone of bilateral relations between Beijing and New Delhi and if it is sabotaged, relations could severely deteriorate.
“The border conflict is yet to come, the Indian government now wants to raise the skirmishes between the two countries to the level of education and cultural Which is very dangerous. Cultural exchanges lay the foundation of bilateral relations between Beijing. If New Delhi sabotages the base, the relationship is likely to deteriorate severely, ” Zhao Gancheng, director of the Center for Asia-Pacific Studies at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies, said in the Chinese mouthpiece Global Times.
Mandarin dropped from NEP
Mandarin was included in the draft version of the policy released in May 2019. The recently approved NEP has removed Mandarin or ‘Chinese’ from the list of foreign languages that can be taught in schools.
According to information from sources, in addition to Indian languages and English, foreign languages such as Korean, Japanese, Thai, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Russian will also be introduced at the secondary level in the new policy.
India has taken the step after tensions between the two neighboring countries along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) took a turn for the worse following the bloody clash in the Galwan Valley on June 15.
LAC talks: India-China 5th meeting
Sources say that in the latest talks on the LAC standoff, Indian officials have made it clear to the delegation from China that they will accept nothing less than the restoration of the status quo on the Line of Actual Control, which was present till the first week of April this year.
On Sunday, as the fifth round of the dialogue between the Indian Army corps commanders and senior officers of the People’s Liberation Army commenced, the Indian side made it clear that the Chinese should first retreat for the dialogue to be successful.
