People's Democracy

Saffronised, Sub-Standard Text Books Must Not Be Used

 By our Correspondent

 EMINENT historians, academicians, teachers came together under the banner of Safdar Hashmi Memorial Trust (Sahmat) and gave a call to all those associated with teaching to reject the saffronised, sub-standard text books brought out recently by the NCERT. Terming these new text books as regressive, consisting of numerous factual bloomers, open biases and prejudices, they called for waging a political battle to defeat the nefarious design of the Vajpayee government to communalise the young minds.

 Speaking at a press conference organised by Sahmat on October 5 in New Delhi, they brought out the ridiculous nature of writing, both in terms of 'facts' and language in the two text books of Social Sciences - one for Class VI titled 'India and the World' and the other for Class IX titled 'Contemporary India'.

 Those who addressed the press conference included eminent historian, Professor Arjun Dev,  Springdales School (Dhaula Kuan) principal Jyoti Bose, Springdales School (Pusa Road) principal Ameeta Wattal, Atma Ram Sanatan Dharam college history lecturer, Vishwa Mohan Jha and history teachers Suchi Bajaj and Ms. Bhattacharya from Springdales Schools. Professors of history at Delhi University D N Jha and K M Shrimati were also present.

 The speakers stressed that even a cursory reading of these two books shows that the authorities of the NCERT are determined to destroy the secular character of school curriculum. A Sahmat statement released on this occasion noted: "The shocking academic bankruptcy which is reflected in these books, besides their communal ideological orientation, will only serve the purpose of bringing disgrace to the organisation which has produced them."

 Professor Arjun Dev told that he was amazed at the numerous bloomers, deliberate exclusions and open biases evident in these text books. He was particularly aghast that in a section dealing with Modern Indian History, there was no mention of Mahatma Gandhi's murder. "It is the most disgraceful thing. I am no Gandhian but his murder was one of the greatest tragedies of modern India. Yet it does not find mention while Osama bin Laden gets into the text."

 Asked what would be the next course of action, Arjun Dev stated bluntly that this saffronisation can be halted only when the present government is removed from office, and for this a political struggle must be waged. In the immediate context he wanted all the schools, teachers and state boards to see that such shoddy material does not become prescribed text books in their respective domains.

 Jyoti Bose in her remarks said that these books were physically very glossy but content-wise regressing into backward ideology. She criticised the great secrecy and hastiness in which these books were prepared.

 The speakers referred to the underlying current of chauvinism, Brahminism, and anti-Muslim bias in these text books and said that this was the most disturbing. These themes have been subtly introduced in the text.

 The Class IX book covers three units, viz. India in the Twentieth Century World dealing mainly with the history of India's freedom movement with a brief reference to 'Some Developments' in the world, Making of a Modern Nation dealing with some aspects of Indian Constitution, and, lastly, India's 'Land and the People'.

 The 'contemporary' part of the book actually ends in 1950 though there are odd references to Osama bin Laden and how after the 1996 general elections, the BJP formed the government but, as the book puts it, "Unfortunately BJP could not prove its majority".

 They stressed that the issue of these two books is only an example of the subversion of the basic purposes of education which can be prevented only by the active intervention of schools, teachers, pupils, parents, and concerned citizens.