Varsity recalls book on how to conceive a boy

MUMBAI: A history textbook prescribed by Sant Gadge Baba Amravati University, which came under fire for describing an ancient ritual to conceive a male child, has been removed from the curriculum.

Ajit Deshmukh, registrar of the university, said the vicechancellor took the decision to remove the book from the list of reference books provided in the syllabus. The university issued a notification to announce this decision last month.

HT had reported the book in Marathi for first-year Bachelor of Arts (BA) students titled Bhartacha Itihas (Indian History), published by a Nagpur-based publisher, described the ritual in a chapter named Samajik Vikas (social development), which enlists 16 sacraments of life adopted under the Ashram system prevalent in ancient India. While explaining Punswan — the second sacrament — the book reads, “It was a ritual to conceive a male child. It involved inserting powder of the stem of a Soma-like vegetable in the right nostril of the pregnant woman. Some texts have mentioned the banyan tree.” In another chapter titled Varnayavastha (caste-system), the book suggests it has been beneficial to society. It claims the caste system has been instrumental in protecting “Hindu culture” from foreign invaders and has contributed to development of various skills. It goes on to suggest that the lack of inter-caste marriage has helped preserve ‘purity of blood’.

The passage on conceiving a male child was flagged by Ganesh Borhade, an Ahmednagar-based activist, who suggested it violates the Pre-conception and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act, 1994. The Act seeks to stop female foeticide and has banned prenatal sex determination. Section 22 of the law deals with the “issue, publish, distribute or communicate any advertisement regarding pre-natal determination of preconception selection of sex by any means whatsoever, scientific or otherwise.” Following a complaint by Borhade, the additional director of health services at the state family welfare office in Pune, in a letter, had directed the Amravati district surgeon to act against the registrar of the university. “Describing the ritual, publishing it and making it available for public, prima-facie seems to be a violation of section 22 of the act,” read the letter.

“The district collector took up the matter and it was resolved promptly. We hope that the state will now act against all such violations of PCPNDT Act in curricula,” said Borhade.

INSTITUTE WITHDRAWS BOOK FOR BA STUDENTS DESCRIBING A RITUAL TO CONCEIVE A MALE CHILD AND HOLDING CASTE SYSTEM ‘INSTRUMENTAL IN PROTECTING THE HINDU CULTURE’