How many students can even recognise the cover of the Manusmriti? questioned Rakesh Sinha, Honourary Director of the India Policy Foundation, as he weighed in on a panel discussion asking the question, ‘Is nationalism missing from Indian education?’ at the ThinkEdu Conclave 2018.
“Only when the youth is able to define the meaning of nationalism should they start redefining what it means,” he added about a perceived ignorance among students about the nation’s history.
The discussion was introduced by the chair, R Vaidyanathan, Cho Ramaswamy Chair at SASTRA Deemed University who began by saying, “India is the only country in the world where the past has to be forecast. Because different people and cultures have different interpretations, we are continuously evaluating it differently.” He also cited the example of Mughal history and the significance it receives in school curricula to say that India’s history had tried to suppress facts by creating false impressions.
“You cannot be a nationalist if you are not patriotic,” said Zafar Sareshwala, Chancellor of the Maulana Azad National Urdu University.
He added, “You cannot ignore the laws and ethics of the country and continue to call yourself a nationalist. For me, nationalism is the value system that we have shared in this country for years. These are the values that must be passed on in the most basic levels in schools.” He went on to add that nationalism had been reduced to a few words and symbols. “Our past continuously adds to our value systems, but you cannot define it through a few ideas alone. It is not about these external things, it has to come from inside,” he said.
“There is no other,” stated Sinha, refusing that nationalism abides to a particular culture. “In India, we have a population made up of various religions and cultures, so it is pertinent that we need to have an inclusive education system.” The co-panelists agreed that the past could not adhere to a particular culture or identity.
When asked by an audience member as to why students should not be able to forge their own sense of nationalism through personal experiences, Vaidyanathan was quick to remind him, “Ours is too rich of a culture for us to walk ahead without acknowledging it.”We are not a chota, mota civilisation that came up yesterday. We have our own baggage but we need to pave our way beyond it, said Vaidyanathan. But coming back to how we trivialize patriotism and nationalism, Sinha said, “Who is calling Bharat Mata and who is not are very small things and not going to change India’s discourse.”