Cartoon Controversy

Finally Thorat Committee constituted by the National Council for Educational Research And Training (N.C.E.R.T) to review the cartoons in its Social Science text books gives its recommendations to delete some controversial cartoons and text.

Flimsy and bizarre reasons are given for their removal as they are negative and presenting politicians and bureaucrats in an ‘incorrect manner’.

Can a cartoon portray a politician in an incorrect manner? Or it is a way of showing their negative things in a light manner. In other words a humorous way of criticizing.

We have to go back to the time before independence when there was great censorship on press and political articles and editorials criticizing Government were not allowed to get published; even at that time cartoons were not banned.

There are several incidents where British Officer depicted in the cartoon had called the cartoonist and asked for its original copy.

After independence our First Prime Minister Pt. Nehru was great admirer of  Shankar’s cartoon. He is the same cartoonist whose Ambedkar cartoon in 11^th class book started this controversy. Many other cartoonist cartoons were liked by our great leaders from time to time. This shows the humorous and tolerable nature of our then leaders. They were open to criticism. So is this Cartoon Controversy showing the intolerable nature of our present leaders?

Moreover, cartoons were inserted in textbooks for developing logical thinking in students and making them ask questions whose answerscannot be found in book.

In this way it can remove the malaise of  rote learning from our education system.

Sometimes, the impossible questions asked by ‘Munni and Unni’ can make the students scan for extra resources and widening their knowledge base.

Cartoons also make the heavy subject such as Political Science easier for school level students to understand easily.

If the recommended deletions are accepted by NCERT it will be a matter of  national shame.

As said by M.S.S Pandian “What’s politically incorrect need not be educationally inappropriate.”