NCERT forms panel amid Class 8 Maratha empire map row

After objections were raised over a map in Class VIII social science textbook that depicted Jaisalmer as part of the Maratha empire, the NCERT on Thursday constituted a committee to “examine the feedback” it received on the textbook content.

“At present, the  National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has received feedback about the educational content in a few textbooks. Hence, a committee is being constituted having senior experts, as per its established practice. This committee will examine the feedback in light of the available evidence and submit its report at the earliest possible,” the NCERT said. 

The council said the committee comprised high-level domain experts from reputed institutions and faculty members from the relevant subject area with the convenorship of the head of the curriculum department.

Chapters on Manekshaw, 2 other war heroes 

The Ministry of Defence on Thursday said chapters on the lives and sacrifices of Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, Brigadier Mohammad Usman, and Major Somnath Sharma have been added to the NCERT syllabus for Class VIII (Urdu), Class VII (Urdu), and Class VIII (English), respectively

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Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw led to victory in the Indo-Pak conflict of 1971. Brigadier Mohammad Usman oversaw operations that led to the eviction of Pakistani forces from Jhangar and Poonch (J&K) in 1947-1948. Major Somnath Sharma captured Budgam during the same conflict.  

The committee would carefully deliberate on the matter, make evidence-based decisions regarding the content or pedagogy, and recommend appropriate actions accordingly at the earliest, it said.

Chaitanya Raj Singh, a descendant of Jaisalmer's former royal family had urged the Education Ministry to look into the issue after objecting to the map which he termed “as an attempt to tarnish the sacrifices, sovereignty, and valorous saga of our ancestors”.

“The map shown in the NCERT Social Science textbook for Class 8 (Unit 3, page number 71) depicts Jaisalmer as a part of the then Maratha empire, which is historically misleading, factually baseless, and deeply objectionable. Such unverified and historically unsubstantiated information not only raises questions about the credibility of institutions such as NCERT but also hurts our glorious history and public sentiments. This issue is not merely a textbook error but appears to be an attempt to tarnish the sacrifices, sovereignty, and valorous saga of our ancestors,” Singh had said. 

Brigadier Bhupesh Singh (retd) had also objected to the map on X. “What is this fictitious empire that supposedly ruled over Rajputana? We were never under the Marathas - do not wound our pride with fabricated stories. Oppressing and plundering one's own people is not called an empire,” he said.

Michel Danino, the chairperson of the NCERT’s curricular area group for the new social science textbooks, said, “Further research is on to confirm that our map’s boundaries are incorrect.”