The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has taken a pointed stance against Britain in its latest Class 8 social science textbook, highlighting the British government’s continued refusal to formally apologise for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919. The revision is part of the broader overhaul undertaken under the new National Education Policy (NEP) and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCFSE) 2023.
The updated textbook, titled Exploring Society: India and Beyond Part 2, devotes a chapter — ‘India’s Long Road to Independence’ to chronicling the country’s freedom struggle, spanning from the 1857 revolt through to the 1947 Partition of India and Pakistan, including references to the Partition of Bengal. Within this chapter, the Jallianwala Bagh massacre is described as a “deeply shameful event in British history,” with the book explicitly noting that despite repeated requests, Britain has yet to tender a formal apology for the atrocity. Notably, the previous edition of the textbook made no mention of any such requests.
On April 13, 1919, Brigadier-General Reginald Dyer ordered his troops to open fire on thousands of unarmed civilians who had gathered at the annual Baisakhi fair to protest against the Rowlatt Act. The firing inside the crowded, enclosed ground continued for approximately 10 minutes and was reported to have deliberately targeted the exits, leaving those present with no means of escape.
A British government inquiry placed the death toll at 379, with around 1,200 injured. However, those figures have long been disputed as a significant undercount. A committee headed by Madan Mohan Malviya estimated the number of dead at over 1,000 to 1,500. While Britain expressed deep “regret” over the bloodshed in 2019, it has stopped short of issuing a formal apology to this day.
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