Hindu-Muslim riots, caste conflicts should not be part of curriculum: ICSS

Agencies

July 2, 2017

New Delhi, Jul 2: Textbooks today are aimed at creating "activists" and not educating students, and subjects such as Hindu-Muslim riots and caste-based conflicts should not be part of school curriculum, according to newly appointed ICSSR Chief Braj Bihari Kumar.

Kumar, an anthropologist who took over as the head of the apex body promoting research in social sciences last month, also believes that universities like JNU are becoming a "nurturing ground" for activists.

The 76-year-old Kumar also believes that caste-based conflicts and intolerance in the country are "fringe" phenomena and should not be seen as a reflection of the Indian society.

"Textbooks are not meant for making students activists but for educating them. Unfortunately the books are driven by an agenda today and there is a need for a curriculum rehaul. Subjects like Hindu-Muslim riots and caste-based conflicts should not form basis of students' mindset and their grooming," Kumar told PTI in an interview.

"Textbooks are in bad shape today. I had found a map in a social science textbook which was showing Jammu and Kashmir out of India, there was another one not showing north east area as part of the country. There are several lapses in our textbooks," he added.

Kumar, who used to used to edit a journal, Dialogue, before he joined the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), had also written in an editorial in 2016 that "NCERT textbooks are driven by political agenda and are partly responsible for the increasing social conflicts and anarchical trends in society".

"I had also written two letters to former HRD minister Smriti Irani pointing out the issue but I did not get any response," he said.

Kumar lashed out at "JNU-like universities", claiming, "If you are part of society and you are not ideologically driven, several persons from a single family are massacred in Chhattisgarh and there is jubilation in JNU and a march in praise of the killers, much cannot be said about the kind of varsity that is."

Kumar claimed they project themselves to be one of the best universities but "they can't claim excellence when they are hurting nationality's sentiments and becoming a nurturing ground for activists and not a place for education. Taxpayers do not pay money for activist-making".

Kumar further said that "caste-based conflicts" and "intolerance" should not be seen as reflection of Indian society.

"Caste-based conflicts, untouchability and intolerance are all fringe phenomena. They should not be treated as general phenomena and reflection of Indian society," he said.

The ICSSR was established in 1969 by the central government to promote research in social sciences. It gives grants to institutions and scholars, and reviews the progress of social science research.

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Elusive bamboo shrimp resurfaces in Mangaluru estuary after 70 years

News Network

December 7,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 7: A rare bamboo shrimp has been rediscovered on mainland India more than 70 years after it was last reported, confirming for the first time the presence of Atyopsis spinipes in the country. The find was made by researchers from the Centre for Climate Change Studies at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, during surveys in Karnataka and Odisha.

The team — shrimp expert Dr S Prakash, PhD scholar K Kunjulakshmi, and Mangaluru-based researcher Maclean Antony Santos — combined field surveys, ecological assessments and DNA analysis to identify the elusive species. Their findings, published in Zootaxa, resolve decades of taxonomic confusion stemming from a 1951 report that misidentified the species as Atyopsis moluccensis without strong evidence.

The shrimp has now been confirmed at two locations: the Mulki–Pavanje estuary near Mangaluru and the Kuakhai River in Bhubaneswar. Historical specimens from the Andaman Islands, previously labelled as A. moluccensis, were also found to be misidentified and actually belong to A. spinipes.

The rediscovery began after an aquarium hobbyist in Odisha spotted a shrimp in 2022, prompting systematic surveys across Udupi, Karwar and Mangaluru. Four female specimens were collected in Mulki and one in Odisha, all genetically matching.

Researchers warn the species may exist in very small, vulnerable populations as freshwater habitats face increasing pressure from pollution, sand mining and infrastructure development. All verified specimens have been deposited with the Zoological Survey of India for future reference.

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