NCERT Books: The country’s top education body, the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), has recently made changes in its textbooks, which has sparked controversy. Meanwhile, the head of NCERT has said that hatred and violence are not subjects of education and should not be given attention in school textbooks. The changes made in the textbooks also include the removal of references to the demolition of the Babri Masjid and the Ram Rath Yatra led by senior BJP leader LK Advani.Â
The syllabus prepared by NCERT is followed by around 30,000 schools affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE).
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In an interview given to news agency PTI, NCERT director Dinesh Prasad Saklani rejected the allegations of saffronisation of school curriculum. He said that changes in textbooks are part of annual revision.
When asked why references to the Babri Masjid demolition or the subsequent communal violence were removed, Saklani replied, “Why should we teach about riots in school textbooks? We want to create positive citizens, not violent and depressed individuals.”
All the hue and cry about changes is useless
He said, “Should we teach our students in such a way that they become aggressive, create hatred in society or become victims of hatred? Is this the aim of education? Should we teach such young children about riots… when they grow up, they can learn about it, but why in school textbooks? Let them understand when they grow up what happened and why. All the hue and cry about changes is useless.”
The new political science textbook for Class 12 describes the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya as a “three-domed structure” that was demolished on 6 December 1992. It specifically mentions the Supreme Court verdict that paved the way for the construction of the Ram temple.
New information included in books
He said, “If the Supreme Court has given a verdict in favour of Ram Mandir, Babri Masjid or Ram Janmabhoomi, then should it not be included in our textbooks, what is the problem in it? We have included new information. If we have built a new Parliament, then shouldn’t our students know about it? It is our duty to include ancient events and recent developments.”
Reacting to allegations of saffronisation of education, Saklani said, “If something has become irrelevant, it has to be changed. Why should it not be changed? I don’t see any saffronisation here. We teach history so that students know the facts, not to make it a battlefield.”
How is teaching about Indian knowledge system saffronisation?
The NCERT chief questioned how teaching about Indian knowledge system is saffronisation. He asked, “If we are talking about the iron pillar in Mehrauli and saying that Indians were far ahead of any metallurgist, are we wrong? How can this be saffronisation?”
Saklani has earlier been the head of the Department of Ancient History at Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University. Later in 2022, he took charge of NCERT.
Why did the mention of riots and Babri Masjid get removed from NCERT books?
Dinesh Saklani said on the removal of Gujarat riots-Babri Masjid topics from the books, “If something becomes irrelevant, it has to be changed. History is taught in schools to make the students aware of the facts, not to make it a battlefield. Hate and violence are not subjects to be taught in schools, these should not be emphasized in textbooks. The revision of books is done by subject experts, I do not interfere in the process.”
What is the matter?
Let us tell you that the mention of Babri Masjid has been removed from the Class 12 Political Science textbook. Instead of Babri Masjid, it has been presented as a ‘three-domed structure’. Along with this, the Ayodhya verdict of the Supreme Court has also been mentioned in the new book.
