Sonia asks Gogoi to ensure changes in syllabus

Congress president Sonia Gandhi has asked Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi to ensure that the changes in the NCERT syllabus, as recommended by Bezbaruah Committee on history and culture of Northeastern states, are meaningful.
"The Assam government has to prepare itself to make representations to ensure changes in NCERT syllabus are meaningful in case the Centre decides to update the syllabus as per the recommendations made by the Bezbaruah Committee," Gandhi said in a recent letter to Gogoi.
She also pointed out that in the event the Centre does not act on the Bezbaruah Committee recommendations, the Congress-governed states in the northeast "should do whatever is possible to implement them within their own states".

"In the light of what we see to be widespread prejudice and ignorance, which tragically manifests itself in Delhi and elsewhere through violence and discrimination against people of NE origin, I believe there is an urgent need to make people around the country more familiar with the culture, society and history of these areas," she added.
"At the meeting (of Congress parliamentarians from the northeastern states) it was evident that the existing syllabus in your state also does not comprehensively capture NE's history and culture. I would like to urge you to rectify this as soon as possible," she said.

Gandhi also urged Gogoi to initiate steps to identify and highlight the contributions of freedom fighters from the region to create an awareness of their contributions within and outside the state.
Gogoi appreciated the initiative of the Congress president to give the northeast regions of the country a rightful and meaningful place in the NCERT syllabus and assured her that prompt steps would be taken in this direction.