NEW DELHI: Facing criticism for renaming new textbooks in Hindi, the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) on Thursday said the books have been “thoughtfully named to convey rootedness in India’s culture and knowledge systems.”The NCERT response came after Kerala General Education Minister V Sivankutty on Monday criticised NCERT’s decision to use Hindi titles for English-medium textbooks, describing it as a profound irrationality and a cultural imposition that undermines India’s linguistic diversity.“The new NCERT textbooks have been thoughtfully named to convey rootedness in India’s culture and knowledge systems. The names of the books are from Indian languages and not specifically Hindi,” said an official NCERT statement shared with this paper.The English textbook for Grades 1 and 2 is titled ‘Mridang’, derived from Mridangam, a widely recognised percussion instrument associated with Carnatic music. The Grade 7 textbook, Poorvi, is named after a raga, traditionally sung at dusk, said the statement.“Similarly, the Ganit Prakash mathematics textbook draws from India’s rich mathematical heritage. The title has been chosen to attract children’s curiosity about the rich mathematical heritage of the country,” the statement added.“Having Indian names for Mathematics or English language textbooks shall not only promote pride in Indian languages and culture but also generate curiosity about our rich cultural and scientific heritage,” it said.
Source link
