India's National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has reconstituted the development team for Class 11 and 12 political science textbooks.
The move is significant as it places individuals with ties to right-wing organizations in charge of shaping the political education of senior secondary students. This shift occurs as the council seeks to align curriculum with specific ideological frameworks.
According to reports, four members of the newly formed panel have documented links to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) or its student wing, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) [1, 2, 3]. The total size of the development team varies by report, with figures ranging from 16 [2] to 20 members [1].
The reconstitution is part of a broader revision process by the NCERT. The council said the goal is to incorporate Indian knowledge systems and "cultural rootedness" into the textbooks [2, 3].
This revision process targets the core curriculum for students in their final years of schooling. By altering the political science textbooks, the council intends to shift the pedagogical approach toward a more traditionalist Indian perspective.
The NCERT is headquartered in New Delhi and is responsible for designing the national curriculum for schools across India. The changes were initiated in 2024 [1, 2].
“Four members of the newly formed panel have documented links to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) or its student wing.”
The inclusion of RSS-linked members in the textbook development process suggests a systemic effort to integrate nationalist ideologies into India's public education. By prioritizing 'cultural rootedness,' the NCERT is moving away from previous curricular standards to emphasize a specific interpretation of Indian political identity and history.
