Himanta Biswa Sarma, chief minister, Assam has supported the recommendation put forth by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) committee to substitute ‘India’ with ‘Bharat’ in school textbooks. He remarked, “Ye kaam bahut acha hua hai bharat ka jayjaykar hona chahiye desh mei,” expressing his approval for the change, according to an official statement.
The recommendation to replace ‘India’ with ‘Bharat’ in school textbooks was made by an NCERT panel led by historian CI Issac. These recommendations were put forward by the seven-member committee for Social Sciences, which is part of the various committees established by the NCERT to create position papers on a range of subjects, the statement mentioned.
The recommendations made by the NCERT panel stirred controversy, as some opposition leaders claimed that it was causing ‘confusion,’ especially since many institutions incorporate ‘India’ in their names. The proposal to replace ‘India’ with ‘Bharat’ in school textbooks, announced on Wednesday, triggered a strong response from the opposition. Leaders from various political parties united in their opposition to the proposed change, as per the statement.
With inputs from ANI.