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The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) is an apex resource organisation set up by the Government of India to assist and advise the central and state governments on academic matters related to school education. The model textbooks published by the Council for adoption by school systems across India have generated controversies over the years. They have been accused of reflecting the political views of the party in power in the Government of India. In particular, during the years of the Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled governments, they were accused of "saffronising" Indian history (i.e., reflecting Hindu nationalist views) and engaging in historical revisionism. ==Background== The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) was established in 1961 by the Government of India by combining a number of existing organisations.〔 (Leading the Change: 50 years of NCERT ), NCERT, 19 August 2011 〕〔 〕 It is an autonomous body in principle. However, it is Government-funded and its Director is appointed by the Ministry of Human Resource Development (formerly Ministry of Education). In practice, the NCERT has operated as a semi-official organisation promoting a "State-sponsored" educational philosophy.〔 〕〔 〕 In the early 1960s, national integration and unifying the various communities of India became a major concern to the Government. Education was seen as an important vehicle for the emotional integration of the nation. The Minister of Education M. C. Chagla was concerned that the textbooks in history should not recite myths but be secular and rational explanations of the past. A committee on history education was established with the membership of Tara Chand, Nilakanta Sastri, Mohammad Habib, Bisheshwar Prasad, B. P. Saxena and P. C. Gupta, which commissioned a number of history textbooks to be authored by the leading historians. Romila Thapar's ''Ancient India'' for class VI was published in 1966, ''Medieval India'' for class VII in 1967. A number of other books, Ram Sharan Sharma's ''Ancient India'', Satish Chandra's ''Medieval India'', Bipan Chandra's ''Modern India'' and Arjun Dev's ''India and the World'' were published in 1970's. These texts were intended to be "model" textbooks which were "modern and secular," free of communal bias and prejudice. However, Deepa Nair states that they also carried a "Marxist imprint." The Marxist emphasis on social and economic issues implied a critique of culture and tradition. The value of spirituality was reduced. The Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was sympathetic to the Marxist view of history and believed in a scientific outlook on civil society. In contrast, the Hindu nationalist historiography disagreed with Marxist historiography and based Indian history in the antiquity with glories of Hindu civilization and culture. These contrary views of history set the scene for conflict. The textbooks faced political pressures from the inception. In 1969, a Parliamentary Consultative Committee wanted the textbook on ''Ancient India'' to state categorically that the "Aryans" were indigenous to India. But the demand was rejected by the Editorial Board as well as Thapar as the author. Further critical reactions came from Hindu and Sikh religious organisations that their respective religions and religious leaders had not been glorified. The Hindu Mahasabha and Arya Samaj claimed that the mention of beef-eating in ancient times went counter to the religious sentiments of the "Hindu nationality." Such controversies continue till today. The controversy centers around the charges of an attempted "saffronised" rewriting of Indian history (i.e., making lessons consonant with the Hindutva).〔 Allegations of historical revisionism with a Hindu nationalist agenda arose in two periods: under the Janata Party government 1977 to 1980 and again under the Bharatiya Janata Party government from 1998 to 2004. In 2012, the organization has been blamed for attempting to insult the government by publishing 'offensive' cartoons in its textbooks. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「NCERT textbook controversy」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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