Images of the Taj Mahal and Gandhi removed from the cover of the new NCERT book; Supreme Court at the top..
Shikha Saxena July 08, 2026 03:15 PM

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has released a revised Social Science textbook for Class 8. This release comes approximately four months after the previous edition was withdrawn following a Supreme Court order. On the cover of this new book, the Supreme Court is now depicted as the most prominent visual element, replacing the Parliament.

**Supreme Court at the Top**
On the old cover, the Supreme Court and the Parliament were accorded roughly equal space, alongside images of monuments, national leaders, and symbols of modern India. Now, the Supreme Court occupies the topmost and central position, while the Parliament is placed in the lower half of the cover.

The new design also omits images of several leaders associated with the freedom struggle that were previously displayed against the backdrop of a world map. These included Bhagat Singh, Mahatma Gandhi, Sri Aurobindo, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Subhash Chandra Bose, Sarojini Naidu, Jawaharlal Nehru, Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay, and Savitribai Phule.

India's architectural heritage has also been reimagined. While the Konark Sun Temple remains, the Taj Mahal has been removed, and the India Gate is now featured in the artwork. Modern high-rise buildings that appeared on the old cover have also been excluded, thereby reducing references to contemporary urban development.

Overall, the new cover design shifts the focus toward constitutional institutions, with the Supreme Court and Parliament occupying significant portions of the layout. This replaces the earlier composite imagery that highlighted heroes of the freedom struggle, modern progress, and cultural heritage.

It is worth noting that the NCERT apologized for the "inappropriate content," withdrew the book from the market, and has now released this revised edition after rewriting the chapter in accordance with the apex court's directives.

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