New NCERT Class 7 textbook drops chapters on Mughals, Delhi Sultanate
The National Council of Educational Research and Training has released a new social science textbook for Class 7, doing away with chapters on the Delhi Sultanate and the Mughals, and giving primacy to ancient Indian dynasties and cultural heritage, reported The Hindu.
The NCERT is an educational body that advises the Union government on school syllabi.
The updated textbook, Exploring Society: India and Beyond, Part-1, replaces three previous books for history, geography and social and political life, a subject introduced to replace civics.
The changes are part of a broader curriculum revamp under the National Education Policy 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework. New textbooks have been rolled out for Class 4 and Class 7 for the 2025-'26 academic year, after updates for Class 3 and Class 6 last year.
The new Class 7 book introduces themes such as the Magadha, Maurya, Shunga and Sātavāhana dynasties with a focus on 'Indian ethos'. It also incorporates references to the 2025 Maha Kumbh held in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj and includes Sanskrit terms like janapada, samrāj, adhirāja and rājādhirāja.
The book covers the period from 1900 BCE to the 9th century AD, ending with the Gupta Empire. An unidentified NCERT official told The Print that Part 2 of the textbook is scheduled to be released in the coming months and will cover additional topics.
'Part-1 contains 12 chapters, which will be taught during the first six months of the academic session,' the official said.
The book is structured around five themes: India and the world, land and the people, tapestry of the past, our cultural heritage and knowledge traditions, governance and democracy, and economic life around us.
The history section details the rise of Magadha kingdom. Some chapters also mention Alexander's conquest of the Persian Empire, the spread of Greek culture and encounters with Indian kingdoms such as Paurava, ruled by King Porus.
The textbook contains descriptions of Vedic rituals and also mentions that Sanskrit emerged as a preferred language for philosophical and literary works.
Chapter Eight explores India's 'spiritual geography', beginning with a verse from the Bhagavata Purana, which is one of Hinduism's 18 major religious texts. It highlights pilgrimage sites across religions and includes a quote from Jawaharlal Nehru, describing India as a land of pilgrimages united by shared culture and spirituality.
The Kumbh Mela at Prayagraj is detailed with reference to the estimated 660 million pilgrims at the 2025 gathering.
The textbook also contains a chapter on the Constitution, recounting a Supreme Court ruling in 2004 that upheld citizens' right to fly the national flag as part of their Fundamental Right to Freedom of Expression. It mentions how the government sought feedback on proposed amendments to Aadhaar authentication rules for good governance in 2020.
NCERT had earlier rationalised syllabi during the Covid-19 pandemic, trimming content about Mughal emperors and Delhi sultans. It remains unclear whether the rise of the Sultanate and Mughal rule will feature in Part-2.
In the foreword of the new textbook, NCERT Director Dinesh Prasad Saklani wrote: 'The text integrates the values we desire our students to develop, is rooted in the Indian cultural context and introduces global perspectives in an age-appropriate manner.'
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