To
Prof. Krishna Kumar
Director,
National Council of Educational Research & Training (NCERT)
Ministry of Human Resource Development,
N.I.E. Campus, Sri Aurobindo Marg,
New Delhi -110016
Sub: Request for refraining from including the questionable findings of Sachar Committee Report, already challenged in Delhi High Court, in the books of School children - the matter being sub judice.
Sir,
This is with best compliments from the Patriots’ Forum.
To introduce ourselves briefly, the Patriots’ Forum is a voluntary orgnisation of like-minded people pledged towards upholding India’s civilisation ethos and identity. A brief note on the Forum is attached. More details could be found in our website www.patriotsforum.org.
We have had the occasion to see a news report appearing in the Delhi edition of the Hindustan Times on May 29, 2008, with the title “Sachar Chapter on Muslims in syllabus” It has been stated interalia in the newsitem:
Quote (.)
Sachar Chapter on Muslims in syllabus
In a move that can cause political ruffling, the National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has included a chapter in class VIII social science text book on Muslims not benefiting from country’s social and economic development.
The chapter refers extensively to the Sachar Panel report on marginalisation of Muslims in India. …………………
It is apparently for the first time that a chapter on marginalisation of a particular caste or a religious group has been included in NCERT text books taught in thousands of CBSE schools in India.
(.) Unquote.
A copy of the newsitem is also attached for ready reference.
Prof. Krishna Kumar
Director,
National Council of Educational Research & Training (NCERT)
Ministry of Human Resource Development,
N.I.E. Campus, Sri Aurobindo Marg,
New Delhi -110016
Sub: Request for refraining from including the questionable findings of Sachar Committee Report, already challenged in Delhi High Court, in the books of School children - the matter being sub judice.
Sir,
This is with best compliments from the Patriots’ Forum.
To introduce ourselves briefly, the Patriots’ Forum is a voluntary orgnisation of like-minded people pledged towards upholding India’s civilisation ethos and identity. A brief note on the Forum is attached. More details could be found in our website www.patriotsforum.org.
We have had the occasion to see a news report appearing in the Delhi edition of the Hindustan Times on May 29, 2008, with the title “Sachar Chapter on Muslims in syllabus” It has been stated interalia in the newsitem:
Quote (.)
Sachar Chapter on Muslims in syllabus
In a move that can cause political ruffling, the National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has included a chapter in class VIII social science text book on Muslims not benefiting from country’s social and economic development.
The chapter refers extensively to the Sachar Panel report on marginalisation of Muslims in India. …………………
It is apparently for the first time that a chapter on marginalisation of a particular caste or a religious group has been included in NCERT text books taught in thousands of CBSE schools in India.
(.) Unquote.
A copy of the newsitem is also attached for ready reference.
As it would be seen from the copy of the ‘Rejoinder’ referred to in the attached note, the Forum found the findings of the Sachar Committee, reportedly referred to in NCERT’s new text books, to be seriously flawed, even to the extent of not acknowledging facts on the ground. The Sachar Committee in particular did not, in spite of the Forum pointing out, take into consideration the following important facts:
i) That in 4 globally recognized human development indicators, namely, Infant Mortality, Child Mortality, Degree of Urbanisation and Life Expectancy at Birth, Muslims are far better placed than the Hindus.
ii) That the real reasons for lower per capita income of Muslims are two. First, according to Census 2001, every Muslim woman is giving birth to at least one more child than her Hindu / Christian counterparts due to which the dependency burden on Muslim households / breadwinners is much higher. Second, due to diktats of Mullahs and religious leaders of the community. The work participation of Muslim women, as per Census 2001, is nearly 50 percent lower than the work participation of Hindu and Christian women - the ratios being 14.1% for Muslim women, 27.5% for Hindu women and 28% for Christian women. It further reduces the total income of Muslim household.
iii) Instead of advising the Muslim community and their leaders to opt for small family norm and allow their womenfolk to come out of burka (i.e., veil) for participating in productive activity and nation building, the Sachar Committee has taken recourse to making recommendations for giving them totally unmerited benefits outside the purview of the laws of the land and the Constitution of India as such.
iv) In an important Seminar held in the prestigious Indian Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi, Prof. Sanjay Kumar of Centre For Study of Developing Societies, had established on the basis of a survey that there was no, repeat no, difference in the economic and educational status of Hindus and Muslims. He further, concluded that available data further proved that the proportion of the “very poor” persons was higher in the Hindu community than among Muslims.
Not finding any way out, as again explained in the attached note, the Forum filed before the Delhi High Court a PIL against the implementation of the recommendations of the Sachar Committee Report. The Honourable High Court of Delhi has taken due note of our submission and has posted the matter for hearing on August 21, 2008. A detailed update on the PIL has also been attached to the note. It deserves to be highlighted that apart from pointing out serious flaws in the recommendations of the Sachar Committee, it has also been pointed out in the PIL that the constitution of a religion specific committee, i.e., for the Muslim Community alone, was a flagrant violation of Article 15 of the Constitution which expressly forbids any discrimination on ground of religion or gender. The Honourable Bench of the Delhi High Court has apparently taken due note of the contents of the PIL, as you may like to see from the observations of the Bench, as quoted in the attached update on the PIL.
In any case, the entire matter of the Sachar Committee is now subjudice. You are, therefore, requested to kindly refrain from including any reference to recommendations of the Sachar Committee in school text books of NCERT, as reported in the press, till the decision in respect of the PIL. The Forum will be grateful to know that its submission has reached you and in order due consideration.
We do hope you will treat the matter with the serious it deserves.
Thanking you,
Yours sincerely,
(D.C. Nath)
i) That in 4 globally recognized human development indicators, namely, Infant Mortality, Child Mortality, Degree of Urbanisation and Life Expectancy at Birth, Muslims are far better placed than the Hindus.
ii) That the real reasons for lower per capita income of Muslims are two. First, according to Census 2001, every Muslim woman is giving birth to at least one more child than her Hindu / Christian counterparts due to which the dependency burden on Muslim households / breadwinners is much higher. Second, due to diktats of Mullahs and religious leaders of the community. The work participation of Muslim women, as per Census 2001, is nearly 50 percent lower than the work participation of Hindu and Christian women - the ratios being 14.1% for Muslim women, 27.5% for Hindu women and 28% for Christian women. It further reduces the total income of Muslim household.
iii) Instead of advising the Muslim community and their leaders to opt for small family norm and allow their womenfolk to come out of burka (i.e., veil) for participating in productive activity and nation building, the Sachar Committee has taken recourse to making recommendations for giving them totally unmerited benefits outside the purview of the laws of the land and the Constitution of India as such.
iv) In an important Seminar held in the prestigious Indian Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi, Prof. Sanjay Kumar of Centre For Study of Developing Societies, had established on the basis of a survey that there was no, repeat no, difference in the economic and educational status of Hindus and Muslims. He further, concluded that available data further proved that the proportion of the “very poor” persons was higher in the Hindu community than among Muslims.
Not finding any way out, as again explained in the attached note, the Forum filed before the Delhi High Court a PIL against the implementation of the recommendations of the Sachar Committee Report. The Honourable High Court of Delhi has taken due note of our submission and has posted the matter for hearing on August 21, 2008. A detailed update on the PIL has also been attached to the note. It deserves to be highlighted that apart from pointing out serious flaws in the recommendations of the Sachar Committee, it has also been pointed out in the PIL that the constitution of a religion specific committee, i.e., for the Muslim Community alone, was a flagrant violation of Article 15 of the Constitution which expressly forbids any discrimination on ground of religion or gender. The Honourable Bench of the Delhi High Court has apparently taken due note of the contents of the PIL, as you may like to see from the observations of the Bench, as quoted in the attached update on the PIL.
In any case, the entire matter of the Sachar Committee is now subjudice. You are, therefore, requested to kindly refrain from including any reference to recommendations of the Sachar Committee in school text books of NCERT, as reported in the press, till the decision in respect of the PIL. The Forum will be grateful to know that its submission has reached you and in order due consideration.
We do hope you will treat the matter with the serious it deserves.
Thanking you,
Yours sincerely,
(D.C. Nath)
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