A poem in Class 1 Hindi textbook -- ‘Aam ki tokri' -- published by the National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has been criticised on social media for using inappropriate language. Several users have shared the screenshot of the poem on Twitter and questioned the NCERT for including it in the syllabus.
In its official reply, the NCERT has said that the poem was included according to the National Curriculum Framework (NCF), 2005, with an objective to expose children to the vocabulary of local languages. It also added that the NCF is now being revised according to the new National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
“With reference to inclusion of poems in NCERT textbooks: It is to state that, in consonance with NCF-2005 perspective and with an objective to provide children an exposure to vocabulary of local languages, these poems were included at that time,” the NCERT tweeted.
“In the light of NEP-2020, the process of new NCF has already been initiated. New textbooks will be developed based on the principles of NEP and recommendations of new NCF thereafter,” it added.
With reference to inclusion of poems in NCERT textbooks: It is to state that, "in consonance with NCF-2005 perspective and with an objective to provide children an exposure to vocabulary of local languages, these poems were included at that time.
— NCERT (@ncert) May 21, 2021
Poem ‘Aam ki tokri'
Twitter users have raised concerns over the usage of the word ‘Chokri' to refer to a young girl in a poem ‘Aam ki tokri' that talks about a girl carrying a basket of mangoes over her head to sell them. Some said that it is a common word, others are of the opinion that it is ‘offensive' and the poem ‘promotes child labour'.
The poem was first shared on Thursday by Awanish Sharan, a 2009 batch Chhattisgarh cadre IAS officer. He called the literature low quality, questioned the credibility of the poet, and asked authorities to remove it from the syllabus.
ये किस ‘सड़क छाप' कवि की रचना है ?? कृपया इस पाठ को पाठ्यपुस्तक से बाहर करें. pic.twitter.com/yhCub3AVPR
— Awanish Sharan (@AwanishSharan) May 20, 2021
Others started sharing the tweet and questioning the NCERT for including it in the syllabus. “This is giving rise to child labour,” said one user.
