Bangalore, March 18 (IANS): After Gujarat, the ruling BJP government in Karnataka is poised to include the Bhagavad Gita in the school curriculum.
Sources say the education department is preparing to teach moral studies students the Bhagavad Gita, the Hindu scripture, although it is making diplomatic statements on the matter.
However, Congress has maintained that the present syllabus was created by resourceful individuals and there is no need to include anything now.
Education Minister BC Nagesh responded to the issue on Friday, saying that after consulting Prime Minister Basavaraj Bommai, a decision will be made to make the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita compulsory for school children under the subject of moral science.
Minister Nagesh stated that there is a growing demand for incorporating moral science into children’s curriculum as it has a good impact. In Gujarat, they plan to implement it in three phases. In the first phase, they introduced the Bhagavad Gita, he said.
“I will be speaking with CM Bommai in the coming days about introducing the moral sciences subject into the curriculum for school children,” he said.
“When we were at school, there was morals class once a week. In the next few days we’ll see if that can be incorporated into the state curriculum,” he said.
“When everything is settled, we will consult educational experts and decide on the aspects and the curriculum of the moral science subject. The duration of the lesson is also determined. Why shouldn’t the Bhagavad Gita be taught to the children?” asked Minister Nagesh.
Former Union Minister of Foreign Affairs SM Krishna used to say that he reads the Bhagavad Gita every day and it gives him strength. In this country all the great leaders, elders who have thought of the nation have spoken highly of the Bhagavad Gita. “Whether we introduce the Bhagavad Gita should be told by the educational experts. They could suggest Bhagavad Gita, Ramayan, moral stories or they could also recommend some parts of Quran and Bible,” he explained.
“If you ask someone how a well-cultured society can emerge without schools and universities from ancient times in the country? The elders say they have read or heard about Ramayan, Mahabharath and Bhagavad Gita,” he said.
Mahatma Gandhi wrote in his autobiography that his mother’s teachings on Ramayana and Mahabharath during his childhood helped him to develop into a real person. He also said that Satya Harishchandra’s decree also influenced him to be truthful, Minister Nagesh stated.
Minister of Large and Medium Industries Murugesh Nirani stated that the Bhagavad Gita has human values and children need to learn these values. The Gijarat government has made a decision to include the Bhagavad Gita in the curriculum and a decision should be made in Karnataka to introduce the Bhagavad Gita to children as well, he said.
Senior BJP leader MP Renukacharya said he welcomed the decision to include the Bhagavad Gita in the curriculum. Young BJP MLA Kudachi Rajiv stated that he has been reading the Bhagavad Gita for 10 years and that it is one of the best literatures in the world.
DK Shivakumar, President of the State Congress, has stated that the curriculum includes lessons on the Ramayan, Bhagavad Gita and other religious holy books. There’s no need to glorify anything now, he said.
“I have been opposed to the National Education Policy (NEP) from the start. The current syllabus contains everything. There is no need to include anything new in it. Hanumanthaiah used to distribute copies of the Bhagavad Gita for Rs 2,” he said.
