As part of the Statewide agitation opposing the revision of school textbooks by Rohith Chakrathirtha-headed textbook revision committee, hundreds of students protested in Kalaburagi and Ballari demanding immediate withdrawal of the changes made by the committee.
Organised under banner of All India Democratic Students’ Organisation, the agitating students aired their angry by raising slogans against textbook revision committee and the State government.
“Lesson about Savitribai Phule, who had fought for the education of women and the downtrodden, Kanakadasa and Purandara Dasa have been dropped from the Social Science textbook meant for Class VII. In the same textbook, the references to Mahad Satyagraha and the Nasik temple entry movement led by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar. In the earlier Social Science textbook meant for Class IX, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar was called the Architect of the Indian Constitution. But, Rohith Chakrathirtha-headed committee dropped the word ‘Architect’ to downplay Dr. Ambedkar’s contributions to the drafting of the Constitution. In the Kannada textbook meant for Class X, a lesson that shed light on the Vivekananda’s revolutionary and human thoughts is also dropped. Besides, the texts authored by progressive writers P. Lankesh, A.N. Murthy Rao, Sa Ra Abubkar and others have been dropped and the lessons that uphold the regressive right-wing ideology were included,” Hanamanth S.H., district president of the organisation said during the agitation in Kalaburgi.
