The Rajasthan government announced on Tuesday that school textbooks would now carry a letter from “mother” cow to the students, addressing them as her children. The move is the most recent in a series of steps to restructure the curriculum so as to ensure “no Kanhaiya Kumar was born in the state”.
Apart from the letter, a number of inclusions and omissions have been enacted under the state Education Minister Vasudev Devnani. Embroiled in controversy and ridiculed for ideologically vested agendas, Devnani claims that he is introducing changes to produce a "three-pronged effect: teach the child about the ‘veer’ and ‘veerangana’ of Rajasthan; make the child proud of Indian culture; and, create an ideal citizen and a patriot."
Here is a list of the “corrections” that are to come into effect under the Devnani’s rein:
1. The new edition of history textbooks for class VIII have significantly reduced mention of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's contribution towards the freedom struggle as well as the formation of modern India. The chapter titled ‘our constitution’ carries a one-line mention of Nehru. The second reference only mentions him having “inaugurated” one of the steps on the course to Rajasthan’s unification.
2. The textbook features Mahatma Gandhi, Subhas Chandra Bose, Veer Savarkar, Bhagat Singh, Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak and revolutionary Hemu Kalani but is silent on Sarojini Naidu, Madan Mohan Malviya or other freedom fighters.
3. There is also no mention of Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination by Nathuram Godse.
4. The Mughal emperor Akbar would be taught without the suffix ‘Great’, which would be used to describe Maharana Pratap and Chanakya.
5. A more detailed description of Sardar Patel’s contribution to the unification of India has been added to the history text.
6. Hindi chapters loaded with Urdu words were dropped as they were deemed difficult for the students.
7. Biographies of freedom fighters like Bhagat Singh will become a part of the school curriculum.
8. Figures like Hemu Kalani, Maharaja Dahrsen, Saint Kanwar Ram and Swami Tauram have been added as mentioned in The Times of India.
9. Works of western authors like John Keats, Thomas Hardy, William Blake, T S Eliot and Edward Lear will be removed from English textbooks. The textbooks will instead carry works of lesser-known authors to introduce a “regional flavour”.
10. A chapter has been added to class V Hindi textbooks, which is written in a cow’s voice. The text narrates the benefits of considering her their mother. However, according to scroll.in, the textbook is not a part of the examination syllabus.