NCERT Class 8 Textbook Changes Partition Narrative

NEW DELHI: The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has introduced further revisions in its Class 8 social science textbook Exploring Society: India and Beyond, including changes to content on Partition, removal of references to Adolf Hitler and Nazi ideology, and additions on legal processes.

In the revised edition, the chapter “India’s Long Road to Independence” states that Partition in 1947 was “widely opposed even by the Congress” and that whether its acceptance was “the only way forward” remains a matter of debate. The earlier line stating that Congress leaders accepted Partition as the only option amid communal violence has been removed.

The updated text also includes a reference to Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, noting that “a similar demand for Swaraj was expressed by V.D. Savarkar in 1925”.

References to Adolf Hitler and Nazi ideology, which were part of the earlier account of Subhas Chandra Bose seeking support during the freedom struggle, have been omitted. The revised version instead states that Bose “sought support from the anti-British forces”.

The textbook also removes content related to judicial backlog and certain court verdicts, and adds material on Public Interest Litigation (PIL), tribunals and alternative dispute resolution mechanisms.

In a separate chapter on citizenship, the book expands the definition of discrimination to include “economic background” along with caste, religion, ethnicity, disability, race, physical appearance, gender and sexuality. It states that discrimination on these grounds is unethical and legally prohibited.

The revision follows public debate over definitions of discrimination in higher education regulations issued by the University Grants Commission, which do not explicitly include economic background as a protected category.

The updated textbook incorporates these changes as part of a broader revision of content.