Gandhinagar, Mar 17: The Gujarat government on Thursday announced in the Assembly that the Bhagavad Gita will be a part of the school syllabus for Classes 6 to 12 across the state from the academic year 2022-23.

Education Minister Jitu Vaghani made the announcement in the legislative Assembly during a discussion on budgetary allocations for the education department.

The decision to introduce the values and principles enshrined in the Bhagavad Gita in school curriculum was in line with the new National Education Policy (NEP) unveiled by the Centre, which advocates the introduction of modern and ancient culture, traditions and knowledge systems so that students feel proud of India's rich and diverse culture, the minister said.

Speaking to reporters later, Vaghani said people from all faiths have accepted the moral values and principles outlined in the ancient Hindu scripture.

"Hence, we have decided to introduce the Bhagavad Gita in the school curriculum for Classes 6 to 12. For students of Classes 6 to 8, the scripture will be introduced in the textbook of 'Sarvangi Shikshan' (holistic education). From Classes 9 to 12, it will be introduced in the form of storytelling in the textbook of the first language," he said.

Schools will also organise activities based on the scripture such as prayers, shloka recitation, comprehension, drama, quiz, painting and elocution competitions, he said.

Study material such as books and audio-video CDs will be provided to schools by the government, the minister added.

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Mangaluru: In a major development in the Dharmasthala mass burial case, the whistleblower, a former sanitation worker appeared before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) in Mangaluru on Saturday, July 26. He was questioned for more than seven hours and recorded his statement before investigating officer Jitendra Kumar Dayama.

According to sources, the complainant’s legal team received a notice late on Friday night, July 25, summoning him for questioning at the newly established SIT office located at the PWD Inspection Bungalow (IB) in Mallikatte, Kadri. Two rooms within the bungalow have been reserved for the SIT’s operations.

A day earlier, senior officials from the SIT, including DIG M N Anucheth and DySP Dayama, reached Mangaluru and officially took over the case files from the Dakshina Kannada district police. The SIT is currently examining land survey records and other crucial documents related to the alleged burial sites as part of the probe.

The case, which has triggered widespread concern, is based on a complaint filed by the former employee who claimed that he had buried the bodies of several women and children on instructions from his superiors over a period spanning 20 years between 1995 and 2015. The complainant also submitted skeletal remains, reportedly exhumed from one of the alleged burial sites, as evidence to support his claims.

The Mangaluru rural police had registered a case based on the complaint on July 4. Following public pressure and demands for a fair probe, the Karnataka government constituted the Special Investigation Team on July 19.

The SIT is headed by senior IPS officer DGP Pronab Mohanty, who is also in charge of the Internal Security Division and Cyber Command. His appointment came after the complainant’s legal team appealed to the government to assign an impartial officer to lead the investigation.

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