K'taka gov't awaiting word from 'Swamijis' on textbook revision issue, says BC Nagesh

Amid continued protests by Congress leaders and others, Minister for Primary and Secondary Education BC Nagesh asserted that there is no question of dropping the revision of textbooks. He also informed that they would consider the opinions of Swamijis of various mutts regarding re-revising the chapter on Basavanna in the Social Science textbook of Class IX. Speaking to TNIE, Minister Nagesh said, "Following Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai's meeting last week, we had decided to retain the chapter on Basavanna revised by Bargur Ramachandrappa. But there are objections to that also now. So we are waiting for the letters from Swamijis in this regard," he said. 

He also informed that they have decided to retain the word/line missed out on Dr BR Ambedkar in the Social Science textbook of Class IX during the revision now. Minister Nagesh reiterated, "Once the books are in the public domain, if people have any objections related to the revision of any content of any lesson, we are ready to re-revise that." He added that they are not forming a separate committee for re-revising textbooks. "The officers of the department only are looking into that," he said. 

Minister Nagesh also clarified that they had not formed a separate committee for revision of Chapter 4.2 (Birth of New Religions) second Pre-University College textbooks. Since it was only to revise one chapter, the school Textbook Revision Committee, led by Rohit Chakrathirtha, had been looking into it. Now that the committee has been dissolved, there is no question of submitting or accepting the report of that committee. He added that the committee had not submitted a report either. 

The Minister informed TNIE that they have decided not to revise that chapter. "In fact, many lecturers had protested about the content of that chapter," he said. On continued protests to drop revision of textbooks, Nagesh reiterated, "Those who have read the content of revised textbooks are not commenting about it. It is only those who are going by social media posts who are speaking on it. Since the assembly elections are a year ahead, this issue has been created. In fact, it is only Siddaramaiah who is speaking against it in the Congress party. There is no question of dropping the revision of textbooks."