Experts, teachers alarmed as India removes evolution, periodic table from textbooks

The changes affect some 134 million children between 11 and 18 years old in Indian schools. - ILLUSTRATION: FREEPIK

BENGALURU (The Straits Times/Asia News Network): The removal of critical sections on evolution and the periodic table of elements from some high school science textbooks in India has sparked concerns among education experts and scientists, who said it would lead to a poor grasp of fundamental scientific concepts.

The changes were made by the National Council for Education Research and Training (NCERT), which publishes textbooks for more than 24,000 Indian schools that are certified by the Central Board of Secondary Education. Private and state-run schools under other boards also sometimes use the NCERT syllabus.