The custodian of official secularism has always been the comrades' favourite Union minister. Today the Left leaders wonder if secularism is lost on Arjun Singh. The National Curriculum Framework for 2005- formulated within Singh's own jurisdiction (the National Council of Educational Research and Training) and authored by someone hand-picked by his own party (Professor Yash Pal)-apparently reflects little of the HRD minister's pet agenda of "desaffronisation" of education.

PICTURE SPEAK

Singh

The new draft submitted before the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) is more about systemic reforms in the education system than teaching alternative history to schoolchildren. Surprisingly, it is not the Left leaders who are in the forefront of the fight for a review of the document but sympathetic historians and academics. These days, they can be seen converging on the Constitution Club and other Left-friendly venues in Delhi, talking about Singh's sullen spirit and the new framework, which they refer to as a disaster.

Historian Arjun Dev, a former NCERT member, is disappointed with the Congress. "Is communalisation of school education no longer an issue for the Government?" he asks. Dev complains that Yash Pal, who is the chairperson of the NCERT steering committee, is worried about the burden of books on children, not the influence of "biased contents". Retorts Yash Pal: "Are we to develop a comprehensive education system for students or brainwash them into believing in Indian history as perceived by some political sections?"

Meanwhile, steering committee members like Anil Sadgopal supplement the battery of Left-leaning critics, including Irfan Habib, Shamim Akhtar, Prabhat Patnaik and Akhila Yechury. Says Sadgopal: "The curriculum will allow 5 per cent of the population, which is capable of paying high fees, to determine the quality of education of the masses."

The critics also point finger at NCERT Director Krishna Kumar for not reversing the Yash Pal formula. There could be a reason for Kumar's apparent disinterest. In parts, the draft reflects the influence of the PMO. The new thrust on integrating work with education and making schools less textbook-centric is a policy directive sent by the PMO to the HRD Ministry earlier this year. According to the PMO guidelines, children should be given vocational training alongside their regular studies.

But to a section of the elite academics, the UPA Government's proposal is no better than the NDA government's framework five years ago. Says Habib: "The new document does not say that schools should not spread values attributed to any religion." His observations almost suggest that India should become a communist state where religious belief is not recognised as a fundamental right.

Even as the Left academics raise the pitch of their rhetoric, it is unlikely to intimidate either the NCERT or the CABE headed by Union Science Minister Kapil Sibal. For, the Government has its homework to do-send as many children to schools and change schools to powerhouses of the millennial India.

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