Why say Akbar 'The Great', say Maharana Pratap 'The Great': Rajasthan minister

April 10, 2015 10:19

Rajasthan Primary Education Minister Vasudev Devnani wants a rewrite of school textbooks, which he feels are focusing too much on "foreign rulers and personalities" such as Akbar and Isaac Newton and not enough on Indians such as Maharana Pratap and Aryabhatta.

In an interview to English daily Indian Express, Devnani said: "We learn about the invention of the aeroplane by foreigners. Why should we not tell our children about the Pushpak Vimaan? If there was an Indian scientist before Newton who did similar work, shouldnt we credit him? Newton has his own place and so should our Indian scientists. I am not saying stop teaching Newton altogether but let us give due credit to everyone. Look at the discovery of zero by Aryabhatta in our country. We have several national and local heroes about whom very little is taught in school. Deshbhakti and sanskar must be instilled in our children."

We keep calling Akbar "The Great". Why is he "The Great"? Let me tell you, he is not "The Great". Maharana Pratap is "The Great". Akbar was merely a ruler. If there is a chapter on Mughals, maybe he can have a mention in that, but not a separate detailed chapter on him."

Read the full interview HERE

« Back to LIVE

TOP STORIES

Kerala woman cadet onboard ship seized by Iran returns home

At the airport, Joseph was received by the regional passport officer.

SC sets aside T'gana HC order declaring 106 acre of forest land as private

The humans have "selective amnesia" about the significance of forests, the Supreme Court said on Thursday while advocating the need for a change in approach towards natural resources from anthropocentric to ecocentric.

'Sun will rise tomorrow!' Curran vows PBKS' turnaround

Stand-in captain Sam Curran lauded the efforts of Ashutosh Sharma and Shashank Singh, who displayed remarkable composure in a high-pressure chase.

Hardik admits MI nerves 'tested' in thrilling win

The MI skipper was full of praise for Ashutosh's whirlwind knock, which kept PBKS in the hunt till the end.

Shooters surveyed Salman's Panvel farmhouse before Bandra house attack

Two men arrested for firing outside Bollywood superstar Salman Khan's residence in Mumbai had conducted a survey of his farm house at Panvel in adjoining Raigad district four days before the shooting incident, police said on Thursday.