India, Aug. 7 -- Close on the heels of Dharmendra Pradhan resigning as the Union education minister - after student protests over NEET and CBSE irregularities - the Centre constituted a high-power task force chaired by Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani, to overhaul the country's education system. While deploying advanced technology and tightening logistics are essential steps, we risk missing the wood for the trees.

The ongoing crisis is not a sudden failure of administration, but the inevitable outcome of a fundamentally broken architecture. Leaked papers, compromised marking systems, and the desperation of millions are symptoms of an education system that has prioritised rote memorisation over cognitive development for decades.

Tacti...