ICSSR Chief for No Mention of Communal, Caste Riots in Schoolbooks
ICSSR chief feels textbook writers want to create social activists instead of learners or students.
Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) Chairman Braj Bihari Kumar feels that Indian schools need to scrap portions related to Hindu-Muslim or caste riots.
The reason he cites for purging the chapters is because “the writers (of the textbooks) want to create social activists instead of learners or students”.
In an interview with Hindustan Times, Kumar, who is an admirer of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said the writers of history and social sciences books ‘had their own agenda’. His comment comes after reports emerged that NCERT books will no longer use the term ‘anti-Muslim riots’ for the 2002 Gujarat riots.
Apart from India’s premier council dedicated to promote research in the field of social science, the 76-year-old heads two quarterly journals – Dialogue and Chintan Srijan – run by his NGO Astha Bharati.
According to PTI, he has co-authored at least 136 book and was the Principal of a government college in Nagaland.
Here are some key highlights from the HT interview:
Speaking on the areas that have been ignored and require research work, he said:
Especially after the recent clashes in Saharanpur, the BJP government has faced criticism when it comes to protecting Dalits.
Kumar, however, rejected the ‘colonial myth’ that those belonging to the higher caste don’t allow backward communities to have access to education.
While commenting on JNU, he said:
Kumar said the textbooks only highlight the issues faced by BR Ambedkar as a Dalit leader.
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