NCERT issues advisory: Return banned textbook, delete online posts on controversial chapter

New Delhi: A day after the Supreme Court imposed a ban on NCERT's class 8 book, the syllabus-setting body on Friday issued an advisory asking anyone in possession of the banned textbook to return it to the council headquarters.

In the advisory, the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) also called for all social media posts containing the chapter's content.

"Any individual or organization, who is in possession of the NCERT textbook Exploring Society: India and Beyond, Social Science Grade 8 Part 2, or any material related to it, may return it to the Head, Department of Education in Social Sciences (DESS) or Publication Division, NCERT, Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi, at the earliest possible, the advisory said.

"...Any content related to the chapter ''Role of judiciary in Our Society'' if posted on any of the social media or digital platform may be deleted at the earliest possible. Also, whosoever has purchased this textbook from anywhere is requested to return it to NCERT immediately," the advisory said.

The Union Ministry of Education on Thursday wrote to the ministries of information and broadcasting, and electronics, asking them to stop the dissemination of a controversial NCERT textbook through digital platforms and electronic media.

The directive follows the Supreme Court order on Thursday imposing a "complete blanket ban" on any further publication, reprinting or digital dissemination of the NCERT's class 8 book as it contained "offending" contents on corruption in the judiciary.

The NCERT's Social Science textbook for class 8 states that corruption, a massive backlog of cases and the lack of an adequate number of judges are among the challenges faced by the judicial system.

The NCERT has also apologised for "inappropriate content" after facing the Supreme Court's ire over the chapter and said the book will be rewritten in consultation with appropriate authorities.

Sources in the Ministry of Education said that the text book was prepared by a panel of subject experts that included a lawyer. However, the officials also clarified that there is no mandatory rule that requires such chapters to be independently vetted by members of the legal fraternity.