What’s happening at Visva-Bharati? A dive into the university’s NEP crisis

Once envisioned as a living embodiment of Rabindranath Tagore’s philosophy of free learning, Visva-Bharati University now stands at a crossroads. When the National Education Policy (NEP) was introduced in 2020, it promised a new era for India’s learning institutions, aiming to foster innovation, interdisciplinarity, and global competitiveness. At Visva-Bharati—founded by Rabindranath Tagore with a vision of blending art, science, and humanity—the expectations were particularly high. But five years later, the university finds itself mired in controversy, cutbacks, and campus unrest.

In 2025, the university eliminated its modest ₹6 lakh internal annual fund used to support experimental science laboratories—a move that faculty say cripples scientific education at the institution. “Reducing t