Assam CM hails NCERT panel’s recommendation on replacing ‘India’ with ‘Bharat’

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday hailed the recommendation by the committee of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) on replacing ‘India’ with ‘Bharat’ in school textbooks and said, “Ye kaam bahut acha hua hai bharat ka jayjaykar hona chahiye desh mei.”

“‘Bharat’ is in our DNA. We have been ‘Bharat’ for centuries. What is the problem with this? The name ‘Bharat’ provides recognition to the country’s soil. The initiative is indeed welcomed’, Chugh said while speaking to media on Thursday.

The recommendations were made by a seven-member Committee for Social Sciences, which is among the committees constituted by the NCERT to prepare position papers on various subjects.

Speaking to media, Issac said the “term India started being used commonly only after the establishment of the East India Company and the battle of Plassey in 1757. We have unanimously recommended that the ‘Bharat’ should be used in textbooks for students across classes.”

The panel chaired by Issac was among the 25 committees formed by the NCERT in December 2021 to prepare position papers on various subjects and themes.

A controversy had broken out over the panel recommendations with some opposition leaders alleging that “confusion” was being created as several institutions use ‘India’ in their names.

The recommendation by an NCERT panel to replace ‘India’ with ‘Bharat’ in school textbooks on Wednesday raised the hackles in the Opposition, with several leaders cutting across parties coming out in opposition against the move.