To: President of India
To :
Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam,
President of India
Rashtrapati Bhavan
NEW DELHI
12 July 2004
Respected Rashtrapatiji,
We wish to draw your attention to an issue that has the
potential to needlessly divide large sections of Indians, and also to
inflict needless harm on crores of Indian children. Before we
proceed, may we make it clear that what follows is a purely cultural
and educational statement, not a political one.
We are referring to the fresh controversies about textbooks
and education. In the last few weeks, the media has relayed a number
of disquieting statements from various political voices ; we have
heard, for instance, about the need to "detoxify" education,
to "purge" institutions of previous appointees, to withdraw
or "desaffronize" school textbooks, etc. Strong words indeed. Whether
a "Great Purge" à la Stalin is meant, we do not know. What is clearly
implied is not only that the previous regime dangerously dabbled with
school education, but that we ought to return to the previous
condition which, consequently, is assumed to have been near perfect
in every respect.
This picture is misleading, because it conceals serious
issues confronting us, and promotes polemics rather than the healthy
national debate that is urgently needed. The issues we must address
as a mature nation, and not through mud-slinging, are mainly the
following three :
1. Historical distortions
One of the main reproaches heard has been about the
historical distortions allegedly introduced in the recent NCERT
textbooks, in particular. Actually, most of the corrections made in
those textbooks consisted merely in removing passages that were
offensive to Jains and Sikhs, and the current campaign against this
so-called "toxification" has come up with no examples of where it
occurred. Moreover, it is implicitly assumed that the earlier
textbooks, most of them written by historians who have made no bones
about their Marxist propensities, were free from distortions and of a
high standard.
History writing is never easy, especially in India whose
history was first written by our former colonial masters. Also,
historians often disagree and are never free from prejudices. The
Marxist approach to history sees ancient societies as barbaric and
primitive, at social evolution as basically class struggle, and at
India as a sponge that merely absorbed from many waves of invaders,
without evolving or contributing anything specifically her own.
If one is to believe some of the earlier NCERT textbooks
(which were the primary inspiration for most State board textbooks in
circulation), Indian history is worth studying only to learn about
the monstrosity of caste ; the most sublime concepts of Hindu,
Buddhist or Jain scriptures are covered, if at all, in a dry
paragraph or two ; Hindu society is consistently portrayed as
regressive, superstitious or stagnant while Islamic and Christian
inputs receive much praise ; in fact, Islamic rulers are depicted as
generally well-intentioned, progressive, broad-minded and tolerant,
while their millions of victims are denied even the right to be
remembered (contrast this with the way other nations zealously
preserve the memories of such holocausts) ; Guru Tegh Bahadur, one
learned, was a bandit ; some of India's freedom fighters
were "terrorists," while spiritual leaders such as Swami Vivekananda
or Sri Aurobindo were "communal."
This is the legacy of colonial historians, which we are yet
to obliterate. There are many more such unacceptable distortions,
extending from the unscientific and discredited Aryan invasion
theory, which archaeological and literary evidence has disproved, but
is still taught in many textbooks in its crudest racial and divisive
form, to a grotesque overemphasis on caste, as if it were the be-all
and end-all of Indian history, and to serious misportrayals of
India's struggle for independence.
Whatever its worthwhile economic and social studies, the net
result of Marxist historiography is an effective denial of the
spiritual foundations of Indian civilization and of its original,
sustained, varied contributions to the progress of humanity. Why so
many past and present Western thinkers, poets, novelists, scientists
should have been so deeply influenced by India is not explained. How
our spiritual culture has had a great cementing and unifying impact
on the Indian masses is also passed over in silence.
Students who receive this education have no self-respect and
are devoid of pride in their country. The result is that our young
people are at best ignorant and at worst have contempt for their
Indian self.
2. Teaching Indian culture and heritage
This brings us to the second issue, which is the appalling
ignorance the average Indian student has of India's heritage. We hear
more and more of value-oriented education, which more often than not
just repackages traditional Indian values. What is wrong in using a
more open language and calling for Indianizing Indian education? We
hear also of "personality development" and find that yoga is gaining
worldwide acceptance — why not accept this scientific method of self-
knowledge and self-fulfilment as a precious tool from our heritage,
which our students can greatly benefit from physically, mentally and
spiritually?
We wish to stress that calling for an intelligent integration
of Indian culture and heritage in education is not a sin ; it is
not "communal" but progressive. The students are taught mathematics,
but not the fact that numerals and their decimal notation originated
in India and paved the way for mathematical discoveries ahead of
Europe. Students are taught science, but know nothing of our ancient
time-scales (which provoked the admiration of astronomer Carl Sagan),
our notions of atomism, evolution, our advances in chemistry,
metallurgy and other technologies. They are not even told that J. C.
Bose's invention of wireless transmission (wrongly attributed to
Marconi) is now officially acknowledged. If they learn about
democracy, they will form an impression that it was brought to India
by the British, as though we did not have long traditions of
democratic workings from the Mahajanapadas to the Chola kingdom. They
now learn a little ecology, but nothing of India's great ecological
heritage. They have no inkling of India's contributions to thought,
science, technology, medicine, literature, art in many regions of the
world. They are told nothing of major discoveries made in the last
fifty years by Indian and foreign scholars in every branch of Indian
heritage.
Such cultivated ignorance, which even Macaulay would not have
dreamed of, is inexcusable in independent India. Why India should be
presented as a dark hole of ignorance, with all worthwhile knowledge
seen to be coming from the West, is inexplicable. This only reflects
on the ignorance of our educationists and textbook writers. It
certainly does nothing to build the students' self-confidence as
Indians, their pride in being Indian, and their respect for India —
values essential to the building of a new India, as you have
yourself, your Excellency, highlighted again and again in your
speeches and books with great force of conviction.
Indian students have a birthright to know about their
heritage, and no one should be allowed to deny this birthright.
3. The quality and modernization of Indian education
This grave defect is, in fact, only one aspect of the crisis
afflicting our educational system. Rather than overhaul it after
Independence, we have somehow continued with the British system,
while making it worse : we have overburdened it with a heavier and
heavier syllabus, more and more examinations (now starting at
kindergarten level in some schools), more and more data to be
mechanically memorized.
Both teaching and learning have become caricatures of what
they should be. The child's inquisitiveness and creative qualities
are smothered and he or she is expected to become an unquestioning
machine. Neither debate nor inquiry are encouraged. Textbooks are of
generally a very poor standard, with irrelevant, undigested and
seriously outdated data, shabby language, unappealing printing.
Moreover, rather than generate an atmosphere of friendship
and team work, cut-throat competition encourages individualism. An
absurd ranking system ensures that one percent this side or that side
determines the child's destiny — and sometimes snuffs out a life. The
number of students committing suicide in India, running in many
hundreds every year, is scandalous, yet not thought worthy of notice
by our media and politicians.
In a word, we have created a cruel and hateful system, which
is all that education should not be. A few forward-looking schools,
aware of those tragic failures, have taken the lead in experimenting
with a lighter syllabus, fewer or no exams, and creative methods
helping the child's talents and potentialities to blossom, but the
average schools continue to churn out mental and emotional cripples.
* * *
Those are the real issues facing us, not saffronization or
crimsonization. It is not a healthy sign for the nation that they are
not receiving the attention they deserve. Once again, we wish to
point out that those who have been calling for "purges"
and "detoxification" are working to revive a dying ideology and to
impose it on Indian students in the name of political correctness.
But anyone who intends to regulate public thought, crudely or subtly,
will soon learn that we Indians have matured a good deal and can
often think for ourselves. No thought police is going to be accepted,
however righteous its garb.
What Indian intellectual life and education are yearning for
is not ideology but freedom from ideologies ; not thought police but
stimulation for original, creative thinking. A lighter, fulfilling
and stimulating education, based on innovative pedagogy and promoting
the great human values and achievements of Indian culture, is what
the Indian youth are asking. Let us spare our children the putrid
politics of a few adults who have not been able to move away from
colonial times. Let us feel proud of our Indian culture and heritage,
which alone can save India from further fragmentation, and which
still has much to offer to the world.
We request your Excellency to ensure that :
1. Divisive ideologies, witch hunts or other purges are not
allowed at any cost ;
2. Education does not become the plaything of politics, with
sweeping revisions imposed upon every regime change ; a degree of
continuity in the educational policy is essential, as without it
students are bound to be confused and to suffer ;
3. A task force should be created to modernize Indian education,
so as to make it both Indian and an enriching education.
Together let us take India forward and not backward.
With profound regards,
Swami Dayananda Sarasvati
Founder, Arsha Vidya Gurukulam
Dr. Padma Subrahmanyam
Padma Bhushan & Director, Nrithyodaya (Chennai)
Dr. Nanditha Krishna
Director, C. P. Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation (Chennai)
Dr. R. Nagaswamy
Former Director of Archaeology, Tamil Nadu, and former Vice-
Chancellor, Kanchipuram University (Deemed)
Shri P. Parameswaran
Padma Shri & President, Vivekananda Kendra (Kanyakumari)
Smt. Tavleen Singh
Senior columnist
Prof. Prema Pandurang
President of Kshetropasana (Chennai)
Shri P. R. Krishnakumar
Managing Director, Arya Vaidya Pharmacy (Coimbatore)
Brahmachari Abhayamrita Chaitanya
Chief Operating Officer, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham (Deemed
University)
Prof. Kapil Kapoor
Professor, Centre of Linguistics and English, and former pro-Vice-
Chancellor, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Prof. Makarand Paranjape
Professor of English, School of Language, Literature and Culture
Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Sincerely,
The Undersigned
Friday, April 24, 2009
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Indian elections: Key players
MANMOHAN SINGH
Prime minister since Congress's election victory in 2004. Despite recent ill health - he took weeks off work after his third round of heart surgery this year - Congress have continued to back him as their candidate.
Mild-mannered former academic and bureaucrat, 78, who made his political reputation as the architect of India's financial reforms in the 1990s. Criticised by some for his gentle, conciliatory leadership style. Pushed through landmark nuclear deal with US, though lost support of Communist allies in process. Has never won a popular election, but enjoys widespread support because of reputation as one of India's cleanest politicians.
LK ADVANI
 |
Firebrand, 81-year-old leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Remembered for leading the campaign that led to the destruction of the Ayodhya mosque in 1992 by Hindu extremists.
Has since tried to shed his hard-line image, reaching out to younger voters and launching a blog, but is seen as hostage to the BJP's continuing Hindu nationalist politics. Angered support base with trip to Pakistan in 2005. Credited with overseeing the rise of the BJP as a major political force. Served as deputy prime minister under Atal Behari Vajpayee until 2004, before leading his party in opposition. Reputation as an efficient and ruthless administrator.
SONIA GANDHI
 |
Italian-born president of Congress party. Widow of murdered former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and current leader of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty. Eschewed politics after Rajiv's 1991 killing before stepping up to lead the party in 1998. Elected to parliament the following year.
Turned down post of prime minister after leading Congress to a surprise election victory in 2004. Seen as de facto ruler whose influence over the party has never been in doubt. Critics have questioned her political management skills and ability to manage crises within the Congress-led coalition. Opponents' attempts to focus on her foreign origin seen to have failed.
RAHUL GANDHI
 |
Son of Rajiv and Sonia Gandhi and general secretary of Congress. Seen as being groomed to take over from Manmohan Singh at the head of a Congress-led coalition. Member of parliament for the family constituency of Amethi since 2004.
Initially refused to take up a leading position in Congress, but now seen to play an increasingly prominent role. Party looking to him to revive its hopes by attracting new generation of voters. Good looking and charming, he is said by some analysts to have a good political knowledge but has yet to prove himself in the tough world of Indian politics.
NARENDRA MODI
 |
Key BJP figure, chief minister of Gujarat since 2001. Powerful and charismatic, popular among BJP supporters. Criticised for failing to stem anti-Muslim violence in which more than 1,000 people were killed in 2002. Resigned in aftermath of riots, but campaigned for re-election later that year on openly hard-line Hindu nationalist platform.
Seen as business friendly and credited with bringing increased prosperity to Gujarat. Modi is a popular writer and a poet in Gujarati and Hindi, as well as a fire-eater. Said to enjoy strong support among senior leaders of the right-wing Hindu Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), which serves as ideological fountainhead for BJP. Served as BJP general secretary from 1998-2001.
MAYAWATI
 |
Leader to millions of India's low-caste Dalits, or "untouchables" as they used to be known. Became India's first Dalit chief minister when elected at head of a coalition with the BJP in Uttar Pradesh state in 2007. Could now emerge at the head of a "third front" in India if both main coalitions fail to gain enough seats.
Has recently softened her anti-upper-caste rhetoric as she seeks to broaden her support base, fielding dozens of upper-caste and Muslim candidates in 2007. Critics complain that her multi-million dollar personal wealth - she is known for her fondness of diamonds and lavish birthday parties - jars with her status as champion of India's poor.
SHARAD PAWAR
 |
One of India's most powerful politicians, an on-off ally of Congress. Head of the Maharashtra-based Nationalist Congress Party, known to have long harboured national ambitions. Head of the Indian cricket board, a position of considerable influence in a cricket-loving country.
Appointed as defence minister in 1991, returned to Maharashtra as chief minister during religious violence the following year. Last broke with Congress in protest at Sonia Gandhi's leadership in 1999, but rejoined the Congress-led coalition ahead of the 2004 polls, going on to serve as farms minister under Manmohan Singh.
MULAYAM SINGH YADAV
 |
Dogged campaigner and president of Samajwadi Party, a Congress ally with 34 seats in parliament. Chief minister of Uttar Pradesh three times as well as serving as India's defence minister.
Has alternated in power with Mayawati in Uttar Pradesh since the mid-1990s. Lower castes and minorities still provide bedrock of support. Currently cultivating alliance with breakaway BJP leader which could threaten his Muslim vote bank.
JAYALALITHA
 |
Leader of Tamil Nadu state's opposition AIADMK party, and potential kingmaker. Former ally of BJP, but could switch her backing to Congress. Has also shown support for a nascent "third front" of regional and left-wing parties challenging the two main coalitions.
An ex-actress, she was brought into politics in 1982 by former co-star and state chief minister, MG Ramachandran. Took over party leader and chief minister in 1988. In 1998 pulled out of the BJP-led government, forcing fresh polls. Detractors accuse her of encouraging a personality cult, and point to accusations of corruption.
CHANDRABABU NAIDU
 |
President of the Telegu Desam Party (TDP), a key BJP ally, since 1995. Chief minister of Andhra Pradesh from 1995 to 2004. Seen as one of India's most dynamic politicians, who helped turn the state capital, Hyderabad, into an information-technology hub.
Believes in what he calls "electronic governance" to cut through the red tape of bureaucracy. But critics say he neglected the rural poor, and did not do enough to quash Maoist rebels powerful in some parts of the state, who came close to assassinating him shortly before he left office. Seen to harbour national political ambitions.
NITISH KUMAR
 |
Chief minister of Bihar and former minister of transport and agriculture. Heads an alliance of the Janata Dal United party and the BJP, which holds a clear majority in the state. His victory in November 2005 ended 15 years of rule by the charismatic Laloo Prasad Yadav, leader of the Rashtriya Janata Dal, a key Congress ally.
Elected on pledge to restore law and order in India's most crime-ridden state. Recently led a "development march" across Bihar, during which a cabinet meeting was held in a village in what critics dismissed as a pre-election stunt.
CHIRANJEEVI
 |
A star of nearly 150 films, Chiranjeevi is the latest in the long tradition of film star-turned-politicians from southern India. The 53-year-old star of Tollywood - the Telugu language film industry of Andhra Pradesh - has launched a new party, Praja Rajyam, which threatens to further divide the votes in the state, hitherto split largely between the Congress and the Telugu Desam party.
Still unclear whether Chiranjeevi can galvanise millions of his fans to mop up votes and play spoiler. Declared at party launch in August 2008 that it would stand for socialism and the empowerment of the poor and downtrodden.
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