Chhattisgarh textbook blames working women for unemployment in India!

Atrocious! In the day and age where women are walking with men shoulder to shoulder, a textbook blaming women for unemployment is terrible! According to the textbook, women have begun working which ha

Written by: Rutu Ladage

Updated: September 24, 2015, 7:14 PM IST

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Atrocious! In the day and age where women are walking with men shoulder to shoulder, a textbook blaming women for unemployment is terrible! According to the textbook, women have begun working which has led to a drop in employment leading many men to remain unemployed. The textbook also adds that since independence, the level of unemployment in the country has drastically increased as women have begun to step out of their houses and work.

The passage, which appears in a 10th standard Hindi textbook is appalling and left the teachers fuming. It was a young 24-year olf teacher who identified the issue and instead of just letting it pass, brought it to the notice of the state women’s commission. Soumya Garg, the teacher, said in a statement to Times of India that, “Does it mean that percentage of unemployment is measured on parameters keeping only men in mind? In the age of technology and gender equality, students can’t be taught about such prejudices. Women have equal right over jobs with men.” The textbook highlights the chauvinist statement in a chapter based on social and economical problems and challenges in India.

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Soumya is yet to receive a response from the commission but she is actively pursuing the issue. Having such false statements can influence the child’s mind and negatively impact feminism in India. India is a predominantly patriarchal country and such statement lay the issue of the a wider problem on women’s shoulders. Is employment only for men? Don’t women contribute to the country’s economy? if a woman earns, why is it such a shame? Unfortunately, it is not the first time that Indian text books have come under the scanner for such controversial content.

Text books from multiple boards have often been mocked for their factually incorrect content, such controversial statements and at times even for instigating students. The education department has time and again stepped in to sort the issue but the bigger problem – that of a lack of qualitative checking still remains. The Indian local and state boards have excessive content and little checking leading to such glaring errors in the textbooks.

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But then, looks like not everybody agrees that the post demeans women and promotes chauvinism.  According to the state council for educational research and training (SECRT) director Sanjay Ojha, “It’s a matter of debate. It was a writer’s view out of his experience. Now, it is the teacher’s job how they explain things to the students and ask the students for their view whether they agreed to it or not”. Well, we don’t know about teachers explaining why the statement is wrong to students but we do know that the Indian mentality towards women stepping out of their houses needs to change. Hope the error gets rectified soon!