‘Bharat’ may soon be seen written in place of ‘India’ in the books of NCERT i.e. National Council of Educational Research and Training. It is reported that a committee constituted by NCERT has recommended this. Also, there are possibilities of including Classical History in the books instead of Ancient History. The committee has also suggested making the heroic stories of Hindu warriors a part of the book.
NCERT is revising its syllabus on the lines of National Education Policy (NEP). To decide this, a 19-member National Syllabus and Teaching Learning Material Committee (NSTC) was constituted.
On Wednesday, committee chairman CI Isaac said, ‘The word India started being commonly used after the East India Company and the Battle of Plassey of 1757. Whereas, India is mentioned in ancient texts like Vishnu Purana, which are 7 thousand years old. In such a situation, the committee has unanimously recommended that the name of India should be used in the books of all classes.
He told, ‘The British have divided Indian history into ancient, medieval and modern. Now ancient means ancient. It shows that the country was in darkness, as if there was no scientific awareness in it. There are many such examples, including Aryabhata’s work on the solar system. We have suggested that classical history should be taught along with medieval and modern.
Suggestion for teaching about Hindu history
The committee has also recommended teaching about ‘victory of Hindu warriors’ in books. He said, ‘For now, our failures have been included in the books. But our victory over the Mughals and Sultans was not told. For example, it is told in the books that Mohammad Ghori had attacked India.
He said, ‘Whereas, it is rarely mentioned that he was killed by the Kokari tribe even before he left India.’ The committee has also recommended the inclusion of Indian Knowledge System (IKS).