NCERT textbooks may soon feature India’s Arctic, Antarctic, and Himalayan research
NEW DELHI: India’s strides in research on the Arctic, Antarctica and the Himalayas may soon figure in school textbooks, with the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences reaching out to the NCERT to include the latest developments in its curriculum. Ministry of Earth Sciences Secretary M Ravichandran said the National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has constituted a committee to bring out the importance of research in these areas in school textbooks.
“We wrote a letter to them … they (NCERT) have recently constituted a committee for bringing out importance of the Antarctica expedition, Arctic and also the Himalayas and some other aspects, including climate change. They are working on it,” Ravichandran said. The Antarctica expedition finds mention in NCERT textbooks but the content hasn’t been updated for a long time. There is very limited mention of the ongoing research in the Arctic and the Himalayan regions, too. In a rationalisation exercise post COVID-19, the NCERT dropped topics such as climate change, monsoon and greenhouse effect from textbooks, triggering a controversy. The council later clarified that the subjects had been dropped to reduce curriculum load in view of the pandemic and added that the topics would be restored with the release of books based on the new curriculum framework.
These books are currently being worked on and will be available for all classes by 2026.The Union Ministry of Earth Sciences is hosting the
46th meeting of the ATCM, the highest governing body for Antarctica, and the 26th CEP meeting. The crucial meets will be held in Kochi from May 20-30 where countries engaged in research in the southern polar region will share the outcome of their scientific pursuits and future plans. India has two active research stations -- Maitri and Bharti -in Antarctica.