Karnataka government consents to 8 changes in revised textbooks

Bogging down to the demands of several personalities, organisations and spiritual leaders, the Karnataka government has now ordered an incorporation of eight changes in the recently revised textbooks.

The textbook revisions done by a committee headed by author Rohith Chakratirtha came under severe criticism over allegations of misrepresentation of facts, missing details and saffronisation.

In an order signed on behalf of the Governor of Karnataka, Thawar Chand Gehlot, H S Shiva Kumar, undersecretary, education department (primary) has ordered the introduction of eight changes in the already revised and published textbooks.

These changes will reflect in a soft copy of the textbooks which the Karnataka Textbooks Society will upload online. One copy per school to all government, aided and unaided schools would be sent, with the changes incorporated, to which the teachers have been asked to refer to.

This comes even as the academic year commenced on May 16, weeks ahead of the routine schedule to make up for learning loss.

This comes on the same day that Spatikapuri Mutt pontiff Nanjavadutha Swami publically slammed the government on a public platform during the 513^th birth anniversary of Bengaluru’s founder Kempegowda. The seer is a prominent spiritual leader of the Lingayat community. He criticized the government for gross misrepresentations in textbooks of famous personalities and condemned the appointment of Chakratirtha as the committee chief. He said that those revising textbooks must not lean towards any ideology.

The following changes have been ordered to be incorporated into textbooks (classes 1-10 Kannada, classes 2-4 Environmental Science and classes 6-10 social studies).

1. Class 9, social studies, part 1:Addition of the word “Samvidhana Shilipi” (architect of the constitution) while referring to B R Ambedkar which was eliminated in the new textbook.
2. Class 7, social studies, part 1: Reinstate prose on Bhakti Pantha and Sufis.
3. Class 7, first language Kannada: Chapter ‘Gombe Kalisuva Neethi’ has been wrongly attributed to Dr R N Jayagopal. This will be attributed to G Udayashankar while also including a brief introduction to the author.  
4. Class 6, Social studies, part 1: Contributions of Siddaganga and Adichunchunagri Mutt to be added back in chapter ‘Namma hemmeya rajya Karnataka’. This comes after seers of the mutt expressed dismay.
5. Class 9, social studies, part 1: To modify details on Basavanna in the India’s revolutionaries chapter.
6. Class 7, social studies, part 1: Add back lines on Surpura Nayak in the chapter on Mysuru and its establishment.
7. Class 7, social studies, part 2: In the chapter ‘Integration of Karnataka and border disputes’, photographs of Kuvempu and Huilgol Narayana Rao to be included again.
8. Class 4, environmental studies: A line on Kuvempu in the chapter ‘Everyone is special’ that says that Kuvempu rose to fame because some people encouraged him to be deleted.  

Also read: Karnataka textbooks row: “I had no agenda”, says Rohith Chakratirtha