The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has decided to remove objectionable references made in a CBSE textbook about the Nadar community.
“It has been decided to remove the references — toddy tappers and migrant — from the textbook as they were not relevant. However, the other things mentioned about the community will remain,” sources in the Human Resource Development Ministry told Deccan Herald.
The issue had fuelled a controversy a few months ago prompting Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalitha to demand the removal of “objectionable” references.
“The social and economical development achieved by the Nadars over the years is commendable. Their success in the fields of education and business can be attributed to their hard work and determination,” she said in November last year, urging Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to direct officials to remove the references.
DMK leader M Karunanidhi, MDMK general secretary Vaiko and PMK founder S Ramadoss also took exception to the “objectionable reference” in the book that “The Shanars (also called Nadars) were a community of toddy tappers who migrated to southern Travancore to work under Nair landlords...”