'Recent Attacks On Rationalization..,' UGC Chairman Slams Academicians Over NCERT Changes

The University Grants Commission (UGC) Chairman, M. Jagadesh Kumar breaks his silence on the recent attacks by academicians on the NCERT for revising the textbooks, he termed the criticism, "unwarranted". He says, "The current textbook modifications are not the only ones carried out. NCERT has been revising textbooks from time to time in the past too. NCERT is fully justified in carrying out the rationalization of its textbook contents. NCERT has repeatedly stated that the revision of textbooks originates from various stakeholders' feedback and suggestions."

He further said that NCERT has confirmed that it is developing a new set of textbooks based on the recently launched 'National Curriculum Framework' for School Education and that current textbooks in which the contents have been rationalized to reduce the academic load are only a temporary phase. "Given this, there is no merit in the hue and the cry of these "academicians." The objective behind their grumbling seems to be other than academic reasons," says the UGC head.

The statement by the UGC chief comes in response to a letter by 33 academicians to the NCERT chief, Dinesh Saklani. These academicians were part of the textbook development committee for books created in 2006-07 based on the 2005 version of the National Curriculum Framework (NCF), and are presently in use, wrote a letter to the council. In the letter, they stated that the recent exercise of syllabus rationalization has undermined their collaborative creative effort and requested the council to remove their names from the current textbooks.

The names of the former academicians include Yogendra Yadav (Indian activist & politician), Suhas Palshikar, (Indian academic and political scientist), Nivedita Menon (JNU professor), Vipul Mudgal, (Head of civil society watchdog Common Cause), KC Suri, (Former professor at the University of Hyderabad), and Peter Ronald deSouza (Former director of the Indian Institute of Advanced Studies), Pratap Bhanu Mehta (Former JNU professor, currently serves as the vice dean at the National University, Singapore), Rajeev Bhargava (Former vice-chancellor of the Ashoka University), Niraja Gopal Jayal (former director of CSD).

Earlier this week, in a letter to the NCERT, Yogendra Yadav and Suhas Palshikar had mentioned that a rationalisation exercise has "mutilated" the books beyond recognition and rendered those "academically dysfunctional", and the textbooks that were a source of pride for them earlier have now become a "source of embarrassment".

Notably, a group of 73 academicians, including vice-chancellors of central universities, have issued a statement in the ongoing controversy. They have alleged that false propaganda is being spread against the council and expressed concerns about attempts to hinder the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 for political purposes.