MADURAI: Emphasising the importance of teaching Thirukkural to school students to inculcate moral values in them, the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court on Monday granted three months time to TN government to complete measures to include Thirukkural in the curriculum of Classes 6 to 12.
Justices R Mahadevan and J Sathya Narayana Prasad observed that Thirukkural is an invaluable source of knowledge, wisdom and practical guidance on leading an ‘ethical and meaningful life’. “It is an excellent choice for inclusion in school academic books due to its timeless messages and relevance to modern times.”.
Though the court, in an order in 2016, had suggested the inclusion of Thirukkural in the curriculum and the State government had also passed a G.O. in this regard, the couplets have been merely printed at the end of the textbooks without making them a part of the syllabus or examination, the judges noted.
Stating that this would not ensure that the students learn the couplets, the judges called the government’s move an ‘ineffective’ measure and the G.O. an ‘empty formality’. “The need of the hour is to introduce moral values through teaching Thirukkural to the students in order to create a more tolerant and harmonious society,” the judges observed.
Additional Advocate General R Baskaran, appearing on behalf of the government, informed the court that steps are being taken to print the couplets in the textbooks along with their meaning and to include Thirukkural in examinations for Classes 6 to 12, by allotting 15 to 20 marks for it, from the 2022-23 academic year onwards.
The order was passed on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by P Ramkumar seeking mandatory inclusion of the 108 chapters (Arathupal and Porutpal) of Thirukkural in the curriculum of students from Classes 6 to 8.