NEW DELHI:The government is working on a plan to include lessons from Hindu epics Mahabharata, Ramayana and Gita in the curricula for value- based educations of students.
Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma on Thursday said the government was working on bringing focus on the Indian values and would not be deterred by criticism that it was trying to promote RSS ideology.
“We want to bring it as part of our culture that they (students) should be taught values, they should be taught teachings of Mahabharata, teachings of Ramayana, Gita and all other spritual values irrespective of caste, creed and religion,” Sharma said.
Hitting out at the Congress, the minister said thought process of a “particular family which has dominated politics of the country for over 60 years” has been incorporated into the education system and that “the NDA government is determined to restore India’s cultural heritage”.
As the government also intends to revamp the Nehru Memorial Library, Sharma said contributions of nationalist leaders including Subhash Chandra Bose and Deen Dayal Upadhyay may feature in this project. Talking about the incorporation of teachings of Gita, Mahabharata and Ramayana into the textbooks, Sharma said: “There has been a discussion on this issue in what best manner it can be done.”
He said as the mandate has been given to the government it means that it should carry out changes. Not mincing words over the RSS influence on the government, Sharma said: “There is nothing wrong in making systemic changes...What is RSS ideology, is it anti-national?, Has any of the heads of RSS been anti-national? Are they extremists? What has been wrong about the RSS ideology? I have been with RSS for last 40 years. They never talk of anti-national things.”
“If at all saffronisation has been done, it has been done by none other than 125 crore people of the country who gave us a huge mandate,” said Sharma.