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The NCERT on Friday issued an advisory asking anyone with copies of the banned class 8 textbook that had a chapter on "judicial corruption" be returned to the council headquarters. In a strongly worded advisory, the the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) also called for all social media posts that carry the chapter's content be deleted. The Union Ministry of Education on Thursday wrote to the ministries of information and broadcasting, and electronics, asking them to stop the dissemination of a controversial NCERT textbook through digital platforms and electronic media after the Supreme Court imposed a ban on the social science book. "Any individual or organisation in possession of the NCERT textbook 'Exploring society: India and Beyond', may return it to the (NCERT) headquarters. Any content related to the chapter 'role of judiciary in our society' if posted on social media or any digital platforms be deleted at the earliest possible," the advisory ...
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday expressed anguish over NCERT coming up with a chapter on judicial corruption in its Class 8 textbook, while promising to fix accountability and take action against those involved in drafting the controversial portion. He also underlined that the government has full respect for the judiciary and has no intent of disrespecting the institution. The remarks came on a day the Supreme Court observed that there appeared to be a "well-orchestrated conspiracy" to defame the judiciary and imposed a "complete blanket ban" on the Class 8 NCERT book and ordered that all copies, physical and digital, be seized. "They have fired the gunshot. The judiciary is bleeding," a bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant said, a day after the National Council of Educational Research and Training apologised for "inappropriate content" in the social science textbook and said it would be rewritten in consultation with appropriate authorities. The bench,
The Supreme Court on Thursday imposed a blanket ban on class 8 NCERT book carrying a chapter on corruption in the judiciary, and ordered a seizure of all physical copies, along with takedown of its digital forms. The apex court ordered that the Centre and state authorities comply with its directions immediately, and warned of "serious action" if directions are defied in any form. The top court issued show cause notices to NCERT director, school education secretary to explain why action should be not taken against those responsible. A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant said there seemed to be a calculated move to undermine institution and demean dignity of judiciary. The bench said such misconduct, having everlasting impact on judiciary, would fall within definition of criminal contempt. "We would like to have a deeper probe," the bench said. The court said that if allowed to go unchecked, this will erode people's faith in judiciary. "No one will be allowed to go scot-free."
The NCERT on Wednesday apologised for "inappropriate content" after facing the Supreme Court's ire over a chapter talking about judicial corruption in a Class 8 textbook and said the book concerned will be rewritten in consultation with appropriate authorities. The council, responsible for school education curriculum, also put on hold the circulation of the textbook, hours after it took the book off its website. "It has been observed that certain inappropriate textual material and error of judgement have inadvertently crept into the concerned chapter," a senior official said. The National Council of Educational Research & Training (NCERT) said it "holds the judiciary in highest esteem and considers it to be the upholder of the Indian Constitution and protector of fundamental rights" and termed the error as purely unintentional. "NCERT reiterates that the objective of the new textbooks is to strengthen constitutional literacy, institutional respect, and informed understanding of ...
The Supreme Court is slated to hear on Thursday a suo motu case over the "objectionable" statements about the judiciary in NCERT textbooks. A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi will hear the case titled 'In Re: Social Science Textbook For Grade-8 (part-2) Published by NCERT and Ancillary Issues'. This assumes significance as the CJI on Wednesday strongly objected to a chapter on judicial corruption in NCERT's Class 8 curriculum, saying that nobody on earth will be allowed to defame the judiciary and taint its integrity. After facing the apex court's ire, the NCERT pulled the Class 8 textbook from its website with sources saying the government has not taken kindly to the inclusion of the controversial topic in the book. Earlier in the day, the top court took cognizance of the "objectionable" statements about judiciary in NCERT textbooks after senior advocate Kapil Sibal, alongside Abhishek Singhvi, mentioned the matter for urgent ...
The controversial portions about judicial corruption in NCERT's class 8 textbook could be removed as the government has not taken kindly to the matter, sources said on Wednesday, while the council pulled the book from its website. A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi has taken suo motu cognisance of the "objectionable" statements about the judiciary in NCERT textbooks after senior advocate Kapil Sibal, alongside Abhishek Singhvi, mentioned the matter for urgent consideration. Separately, CJI Kant strongly objected to a chapter on judicial corruption in the NCERT's Class 8 curriculum, saying nobody on earth will be allowed to defame the judiciary and taint its integrity. The National Council of Educational Research and Training's (NCERT's) new social science textbooks for Class 8 say corruption, a massive backlog of cases, and the lack of an adequate number of judges are among the challenges faced by the ..
The Supreme Court on Wednesday took suo motu cognisance of the contents of Class 8 NCERT textbook referring to the corruption in the judiciary and termed it a matter of "grave concern." A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi was urged by senior advocate Kapil Sibal that "children of class 8 are taught about corruption in the judiciary. This is a matter of grave concern." The CJI said, "I will not allow anybody to defame the institution. Law will take its course." He added, "As head of the institution, I have done my duty and have taken cognisance This seems to be a calculated move. I won't say much." Justice Bagchi said the book seemed to be against the basic structure of the Constitution. The CJI said, "Please wait for a few days. Bar and Bench all are perturbed. All high court judges are perturbed. I will take up the matter suo motu. I will not allow anybody to defame the institution. Law will take its course." Later, Just
The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has signed an MoU with the Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-Madras) to promote technological innovation and collaborative research in education, officials said. The collaboration seeks to leverage cutting-edge technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML), to improve access, inclusivity and quality across the educational ecosystem, they added. "This collaborative effort is important for realising the vision and goals of the new National Education Policy (NEP) and the new National Curriculum Framework. All the books need to be digital and made available in 22 scheduled languages to support education in children's mother tongue," said School Education Secretary Sanjay Kumar. Kumar said that IIT Madras is one of the IT champions and increasingly content needs to be developed on gamification, animation, videos and extended reality, among others. "Personalised Adaptive Learning (PAL) .
The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) will grant equivalence to Class 10 and 12 certificates awarded by various school education boards in India for admissions in higher education institutions and recruitment for government jobs, officials said on Friday. The notification has been published in the e-Gazette by the Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education. This notification supersedes the earlier one dated November 15, 2021, which entrusted this responsibility to the Association of Indian Universities (AIU). "NCERT will discharge this responsibility through the National Assessment Centre, Performance Assessment, Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development (PARAKH), established under the National Education Policy 2020. Under the new arrangement, NCERT will discharge its responsibility through the National Assessment Centre, Performance Assessment, Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development (PARAKH), whi
The NCERT is developing a special classroom module on Operation Sindoor to help students learn about India's defence strategy and diplomatic response, according to sources. The module will have two partsfirst for students from class 3 to 8 and another one for students from class 9 to 12. A source said that the special module prepared by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) will have 8 to 10 pages focussing on India's strategic military response to the Pahalgam terror attack. The aim is to make students understand how nations respond to terror threats and how defence, diplomacy, and coordination between ministries play a role in national security, the source said. Twenty-six men were gunned down in front of their family members in a deadly terror attack in in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam on April 22. India retaliated by targeting terror sites in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Pakistan under Operation Sindoor, leading to a four-day conflict between the tw
The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) on Monday clarified that references to the regional resistance movements have not been dropped from the new class 8 Social Science textbook. The clarification came following news reports claiming that the class 8 Social Science textbook, "Exploring Society: India and Beyond", has removed references to the regional resistance movements. "It is clarified that the said textbook happens to be the first volume of this textbook. The second volume is in final stages of development and is expected to be released in Sept-Oct 2025," the NCERT said in a statement. "Topics relating to the regional resistance movements and armed uprisings such as the Paika rebellion and Khurda uprising of Odisha, the Kuka movement or rebellion of the Sikhs in Punjab, etc., will be handled in this volume," it said.
All references to Mughals and Delhi Sultanate have been dropped from class 7 NCERT textbooks, while chapter on Indian dynasties, 'sacred geography,' references to Maha Kumbh, and government initiatives like Make in India and Beti Bachao, Beti padhao are among the new additions. The new textbooks released this week have been designed in line with the new National Education Policy (NEP) and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCFSE) 2023, which emphasise incorporating Indian traditions, philosophies, knowledge systems, and local context into school education. When contacted, NCERT officials said these are only first part of the book and second part is expected in coming months. They, however, did not comment on whether the dropped portions will be retained in the second part of the book. While NCERT had previously trimmed sections on the Mughals and Delhi Sultanate including detailed account of dynasties like Tughlaqs, Khaljis, Mamluks, and Lodis and a two-page ..