NCERT Denies Publishing 'Class 6 Social Science' Book With Chapter On 'Most Evil People In World'

NCERT says it will take legal action against the publisher of the book in case it is found that they tried to pass off the text as an NCERT publication. 

Ministry of Education (MoE) asked the NCERT to review its textbooks and update them every year. ( Image Source :Representational Image/Getty )

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has issued a clarification on a Class 6 Social Sciences book that reportedly includes a chapter titled “Most Evil People Of The World”. The people named in the chapter include Iran's former Supreme leader Ayatollah Khomeini. The NCERT has said it hasn't published a book which such a title, and said it would take legal action against the publisher if they have tried to pass off the book as an NCERT publication. 

“It has come to the notice of NCERT that some publisher have (sic) mischievously published a Class 6 book of Social Sciences with a chapter 'Most Evil people of the World'. It is hereby clarified that NCERT has not published any such book and has nothing to do with such content. In case it is found that the publisher has used the name of NCERT in such publication, suitable legal action shall be initiated,” the NCERT said.

Updating NCERT Books Every Year

News agency PTI, quoting sources, reported on Monday that the Ministry of Education (MoE) has asked the NCERT to review its textbooks and update them every year. So far, the report adds, there has been no mandate on the frequency of updating NCERT textbooks, although NCERT has occasionally revised and updated content since 2017.

A rationalisation exercise was also conducted in view of the closure of schools due to the pandemic.

"In the fast-changing world of today, it is important that the textbooks are absolutely updated. The NCERT has been asked to conduct a review on a yearly basis and update them ahead of the beginning of the new academic session... they are soon going to put a system in place," a source told PTI.

"NCERT books once published should not remain the same for many years. They should be reviewed every year before printing and if any changes have to be made or some new facts have to be added, they should be included in the books. For instance, topics like Artificial Intelligence are very evolving," the source added.

This year, the NCERT has introduced new textbooks for classes 3 and 6