Why are IIT students being taught about the Wright brothers when an Indian invented the aircraft? That was the pertinent question Minister of State for HRD Satya Pal Singh asked on Tuesday.
Singh feels that IITs across the country should incorporate the puranas and Hindu mythology liberally in their curriculum, reported Hindustan Times.
At an award ceremony for the first AICTE-ECI Chhatra Vishwakarma Award, Singh said:
Why are students not taught that before the Wright brothers, an Indian called Shivakar Babuji Talpade was the first to invent the airplane? This person invented the plane eight years before the Wright brothers. Are our students taught these things in IITs or not? They should be.
He also urged that students should learn about Hindu deity Vishwakarma, worshipped by craftsmen and the engineering community. Singh mentioned the “Pushpak Viman”, the flying chariot mentioned in the Ramayana, which students ought to be taught about.
He laid emphasis on teaching students about India’s scientific discoveries and inventions.
Stating that India currently lags behind in research and innovation, researchers are to be made aware of the country’s rich culture and civilisation dating back thousands of years.
Citing the example of Ravan’s kingdom from Ramayana, he said that the plants did not require watering as they contained Chandramani.
Such ancient technology should be taught to our students.
Singh stressed that the quality of research is to be maintained, saying that each year 40,000 PhD holders are produced in the country, with their research not matching up to the mark. He also remarked that buying research papers is very easy these days.
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