State Education Minister Deepak Kesarkar has said that the Maharashtra government will not go ahead with all the recommendations of the recently proposed Maharashtra State School Education Syllabus.
The use of Manusmriti’s lines as a quotation in one of the chapters in the proposed draft syllabus sparked controversy. Explaining the matter, the minister said that the committee did not get the approval of the government before releasing the draft plan.
Addressing a press conference in Mumbai on Thursday, Kesarkar regretted the removal of Marathi as a compulsory language. “This happened because the draft was released without following proper procedure,” he said.
Explaining the removal of English from the compulsory language for classes 11 and 12, Kesarkar said “it has been removed because the government is working to provide higher education in regional languages, including technical education”.
After the Minister’s briefing, SCERT issued a press release late on Monday, stating that Marathi and English will be compulsory from Class 1 to 10. It also clarified that Hindi, Sanskrit and other Indian and foreign languages will be offered from Class 6 onwards. 11th and 12th students have to learn two languages - one Indian language and one foreign language.
Last week, the State Council of Educational Research and Training released the new Maharashtra State Curriculum Framework (SCF), which recommends integrating the Indian Knowledge System (IKS) into school education (SE). It includes texts like Bhagavad Gita and Manache Sloka – composed by Samarth Ramdas Swami – to improve memorization through recitation competitions.
A chapter on “Value Education and Attitude” from the SCF, aimed at building character in students, sparked controversy by starting with a Sanskrit verse from the Manusmriti, an ancient Hindu legal text describing the social system. The addition drew criticism from various quarters regarding the motive behind the decision.
Addressing the issue, Kesarkar said, “It was an error on the part of the steering committee to put the draft in the public domain without the permission of the state government. The concerned have expressed their regret. Let me make it clear that the government does not want to propagate any text and will not include any of these in the text books.
Lack of clarity in language policy for classes 3 to 10; For classes 11 and 12, English is classified as a foreign language.
Maharashtra Cabinet Minister Sagan Bhujbal also expressed concern over the Manusmriti reference, saying inclusion of Manusmriti in the syllabus could send a wrong signal among Dalits and OBCs.
“Such actions can affect us in the election as well. This effort must be stopped. Although it may seem trivial now, it may pose future challenges,” Bhujpal said.
