No change in Kerala's curriculum due to signing of PM SHRI scheme: V Sivankutty

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : Kerala General Education Minister V Sivankutty on Saturday made it clear that signing the PM SHRI schools scheme MoU would not result in any change to the state's curriculum, amid CPI opposition and Congress allegations of a "political conspiracy". Sivankutty, in a statement, said former BJP state president K Surendran’s claim that RSS founder Keshav Baliram Hedgewar and Vinayak Damodar Savarkar would be included in Kerala's curriculum was "false propaganda for political purposes."

"The BJP leader is making such absurd statements as he has no understanding of the state's education policy," the minister claimed. He added that the state signed the PM SHRI MoU to secure funds for improving the physical infrastructure of schools and raising academic standards. "It will not result in surrendering the state's syllabus to the central government," he said.

Sivankutty said Kerala has its own strong curriculum and academic vision, and signing the MoU will not lead to the central syllabus being taught in the state. "The Centre’s alleged attempts to distort history and communalise education will not work in Kerala, as the historical truth that Nathuram Vinayak Godse assassinated the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, will not be erased from state textbooks," he added. The minister also clarified that the state does not intend to teach about Hedgewar and Savarkar to children in Kerala, describing Surendran’s statement "as an attempt to create confusion in the public education sector."

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Kerala school curriculum

Earlier, Union Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying and Minority Affairs George Kurian said that nothing has been imposed on Kerala under the PM SHRI scheme , and the state is free to decide its own school curriculum. "If they do not want the National Education Policy or vocational classes, they are free to go that way. Nothing is being forced upon them," Kurian told reporters in Thrissur.

On the other hand, the opposition Congress in Kerala questioned why the state government was "surrendering" to the scheme despite claiming there is no financial crisis. Leader of Opposition in the state assembly, V D Satheesan, said, "While Sivankutty claims lack of funds in his department, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the state Finance Minister (K N Balagopal) have been asserting that there is no financial crisis in Kerala. They also claim that all public schools have improved to international standards through KIIFB funds. Then why surrender to the scheme?"