NEW DELHI: To foster national pride and self-reliance among students, the Ministry of Education on Friday released two special modules on Swadeshi.
The NCERT booklet for Middle Stage students is themed on `Swadeshi Vocal for Local’ while Swadeshi – For a Self-reliant India’ was the topic around which the secondary Stage book revolved.
To explain to senior students what a self-reliant India meant, the 23-page module begins with a quote from PM Modi’s speech on August 15 this year - “The bedrock of a Viksit Bharat is also a self-reliant Bharat. Self-reliance is not confined merely to imports and exports, or to rupees, pounds, and dollars. Its meaning is not so limited. Self-reliance is linked to our capability, and when self-reliance begins to diminish, capability too continually declines. Therefore, to preserve, maintain, and enhance our capability, it is imperative to be self-reliant.”
Goading students to make the right choices that embody the spirit of Swadeshi, the module states,
“Keep these in mind when you pick your products - When buying a soft drink, why not choose an Indian brand over the imported sodas? Why not buy freshly made fruit juice from local juice shops?” When you shop for clothes, opt for Khadi or handloom ones as they support local artisans and sustainable practices instead of fast fashion brands, it adds.
Tracing the roots of the Swadeshi movement to India’s freedom struggle, it says that in 1905, the people rejected British products and adopted only Indian-made products. The movement later moved on to art, literature and music and wearing native clothes became a symbol of patriotism, the module explained.
Giant strides have been made on Swadeshi on the defence front, it pointed out. “ India had moved from being one of the world’s largest importers to producing Tejas fighter jets, Arjun tanks, INS Vikrant and advanced missile systems.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, India demonstrated its capacity to innovate at scale by developing and producing indigenous vaccines like Covaxin and carrying out the world’s largest vaccination drive, even supplying doses to other nations,” it pointed out. Start-up India, Make in India, and Digital India are numerous initiatives aimed at inculcating Swadeshi, the module explained.
Through anecdotes and conversations, the book for the Middle Stage highlights that Kerala’s coir industry began with a determined woman, Mayithara, from Alapuzha district. India’s Semiconductor industry is a classic example of Atma Nirbhar Bharat, it pointed out. Another fantastic government initiative, One District, One Product, identified 1200 products from 750 districts and has now extended its footprint globally, it added.