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The National Council of Educational Research and Training has assigned Hindi titles to several of its new English-medium textbooks, including books meant to teach the English language, India Today reported on Monday.
The NCERT is an autonomous organisation that advises the government on programmes and policies for improving school education.
The council’s decision to change the titles of the textbooks was criticised by Kerala’s General Education Minister V Sivankutty. The state minister on Monday said that the decision was “irrational” and demanded a review, The Indian Express reported.
Earlier, the English textbook for Class 6 was titled Honeysuckle, India Today reported. It has been renamed Poorvi – a Hindi language word that means “eastern” and is also the name of a raga in Hindustani classical music.
Additionally, English textbooks for Class 1 and Class 2 are now named Mridang and the one for Class 3 has been titled Santoor. Mridang and Santoor are names of Indian musical instruments.
The NCERT also used different titles for textbooks in different languages earlier, India Today reported. The Class 6 mathematics textbook was called Mathematics in English, Ganit in Hindi, and Riyazi in Urdu.
However, according to the new list, the English and Hindi versions of the mathematics textbook are named Ganita Prakash. It is unclear what the Urdu version of the textbook is titled.
Kerala criticises NCERT’s decision
On Monday, Sivankutty said that the NCERT’s decision to rename the textbooks in Hindi went against “federal principles and the Constitutional values”, according to The Indian Express.
“It is not only violation of common logic, but an incident of foisting one’s cultural values in such a manner sabotaging the linguistic diversity of our country,” the newspaper quoted the Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader as saying.
The Kerala minister added that it was “absolutely wrong” to change the English titles that had been used for decades “to respect linguistic diversity and develop a sensitive approach in the minds of children”.
“Kerala, like other non-Hindi speaking states, is committed to protecting linguistic diversity and giving priority to regional cultural freedom,” he said. “The titles of the textbooks are not mere names; they shape the perception and imagination of children. English medium students deserve English titles. Education should not be an instrument of imposition but of empowerment and consensus.”
He urged state governments to unite and oppose imposition of the Hindi language.
The NCERT introduced new textbooks in 2023 under the 2020 National Education Policy, India Today reported. Textbooks for Class 1 and Class 2 were released first, followed by those for Class 3 and Class 6 in 2024. New textbooks for Class 4, Class 5, Class 7 and Class 8 are being released now.
The latest National Education Policy proposes major changes to the curricular structure for school education, claims to promote flexibility in choosing academic streams and emphasises on using the mother tongue as a key medium of instruction in primary school, among other measures.
The policy has been criticised by sections of the academic community, for encouraging the privatisation of public institutions. It was also criticised for creating numerous “exit” options for students, which opponents said would encourage dropouts.
The decision to change the titles of these textbooks also came amid Tamil Nadu repeatedly expressing its opposition to the three-language formula in the National Education Policy. The state government said it will not change its decades-old two-language policy of teaching students Tamil and English.
The three-language formula refers to teaching students English, Hindi and the native language of a state. It was introduced in the first National Education Policy in 1968 and was retained in the new policy introduced in 2020.
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