The handbook, meant to guide teachers, incorrectly stated that freedom fighter Subhas Chandra Bose left India “fearing the British.” The error was discovered by teachers themselves, who promptly reported the matter to SCERT.

Thiruvananthapuram: A serious error has been spotted in the teacher’s handbook issued by the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) in Kerala for teaching Class 4 students in the state syllabus.

The handbook, meant to guide teachers, incorrectly stated that freedom fighter Subhas Chandra Bose left India “fearing the British.”

The error was discovered by teachers themselves, who promptly reported the matter to SCERT.

The controversial reference appeared in a brief note about Bose.

The handbook first mentioned that he served as Congress president and later resigned to form the Forward Bloc.

But it then wrongly added that Bose “fled to Germany, fearing the British” before going on to form the Indian National Army (INA) to fight against colonial rule.

Teachers flagged the mistake as soon as they received the handbook.

Following the feedback, SCERT recalled and corrected the content, issuing a revised version of the book.

The erroneous phrase “fearing the British” was removed. SCERT officials have confirmed that an internal inquiry has been launched to ascertain how such a mistake slipped through the review process in an official academic handbook.

The handbooks are meant to provide teachers with correct background information and instructions for classroom teaching.

The incident has sparked criticism that such grave factual errors, if unnoticed, could mislead young students about the life and contributions of national leaders.

Bose remains one of the most prominent figures of India’s freedom movement.

His decision to leave India was part of a calculated effort to mobilise global support against British rule, not an act of fear.

With the error corrected and a probe underway, SCERT has assured teachers and parents that stricter quality checks will be implemented in the future to prevent similar lapses.

SCERT Kerala is an autonomous body of the Department of General Education, Government of Kerala.

It is established on the lines of NCERT at the national level and functions as an apex body in the academic matters of school education from Pre-primary to Higher Secondary level.

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