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| Relevance: General Studies Paper I — Indian Culture; and General Studies Paper II — Government Policies in Education | Source: Essay by Yogendra Yadav / Ministry of Education IKS Division, 2026 |
| The Union Government is pushing to bring Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS) — India’s own traditional body of learning — into school and college courses, under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. This has sparked a thoughtful debate, led by top scholars . He argues the choice is not a simple “accept or reject.” Calling our old knowledge backward is a mistake — but accepting a government-set version without question is equally risky. The real question, he says, is deeper: why, and how, should India study its traditional knowledge? |
1 · What is IKS, and where does the effort stand?
| Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS): India’s home-grown, traditional knowledge built up over centuries — covering Ayurveda, ancient mathematics and astronomy, metalwork, handloom weaving, farming wisdom, and environmental ethics. It is not just old books; it includes living skills passed down by communities. |
- The policy push: NEP 2020 directs that IKS be woven into education at every level — from tribal medicine to indigenous maths and astronomy.
- The dedicated cell: An IKS Division, set up in 2020 under the AICTE (All India Council for Technical Education), now funds 390 projects, programmes and centres.
- The real debate: Not whether to study IKS, but how to do it honestly — without either mocking it or worshipping it.
2 · Four blind spots in the current approach
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Time bias
Stuck in the ancient past
Funding crowds around the ancient and classical eras, while medieval and modern Indian contributions are largely left out.
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Language bias
Only Sanskrit counts
Heavy focus on Sanskrit texts sidelines other rich classical languages like Pali, Tamil and Kannada.
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Books vs hands
Texts over living skills
It values theory and shastras, but ignores living, practical traditions — metalwork, handlooms, and crafts kept alive by ordinary communities.
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The deepest trap
Seeking a Western stamp
Trying to “prove” old Indian ideas using Western science makes us depend on the very framework we claim to challenge.
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| How to read this: the first three boxes are imbalances of focus — wrong era, wrong languages, wrong (book-only) form. The red box is the deepest flaw: when we ask the West to certify our knowledge as “real science,” we quietly admit the West is the final judge — the opposite of true confidence. |
3 · The right method comes from our own tradition
A. Purvapaksha — argue fairly before you judge
- What it means: A classical rule of Indian debate. Before criticising any idea, you must first state your opponent’s view fully and fairly — better than they could themselves.
- Why it matters: It blocks lazy, surface-level attacks. Real criticism must grow out of deep understanding, not assumptions — a tool India can apply to its own knowledge too.
B. Prayojana — always ask “for what purpose?”
- What it means: A principle from Sanskrit scholarship that demands we examine the intent behind any text or project.
- Why it matters: It pushes students to ask the honest question of any state-backed scheme — what is the real motive, and whose agenda does it serve?
C. The true goal — confidence, not flattery
- What decolonisation really means: Freeing our thinking from the habit of seeing the West as the only standard. But this does not mean blind praise of old texts.
- A living system, not a museum: IKS should be treated as a living, evolving body of knowledge that can help solve today’s problems — from climate change to public health.
- The Vishwaguru link: India’s hope of becoming a global teacher (Vishwaguru) rests on this mature, confident approach — not on hollow boasting.
4 · Way forward
| Fund the living, not just the written. The Ministry of Education should widen its funding to include oral, practical and craft knowledge — backing weavers, metalworkers and organic farmers whose ancestral skills are India’s true material heritage. |
| Judge it on its own logic. Stop forcing ancient methods to fit modern Western moulds. Evaluate traditional systems by their own reasoning and real-world results, building a genuinely independent, pluralistic research model. |
| Keep it rigorous, not ideological. Apply the classical tools — Purvapaksha (fair critique) and Prayojana (questioning purpose) — so IKS grows as a serious academic science, not a political slogan. |
| Protect it from theft. Strengthen the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL) and the Biological Diversity Act, 2002 to stop foreign firms from “biopirating” — wrongly patenting Indian knowledge like neem or turmeric remedies. |
| Studying our own knowledge is a worthy national goal — but the way we do it will decide whether it earns the world’s respect or its quiet smile. The honest path lies between two errors: looking down on the past, and bowing blindly before it. By treating Indian Knowledge Systems as a living, evolving science judged on its own merit, and by funding real practices over mere praise, India can turn its rich heritage into a confident, modern strength. |
| UPSC Value Box | ||||||||||||||||
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| Mains Practice Question |
| Integrating Indian Knowledge Systems into education is desirable, but its present approach reflects structural and methodological flaws. Critically examine, and suggest how India can study its traditional knowledge rigorously and without bias. (15 marks · 250 words) |
Structure hint:
Introduction — Note the NEP 2020 push and the IKS Division’s 390 projects; frame the “why and how,” not “accept or reject.”
Body Part 1 — The four blind spots — chronological, linguistic, textual-vs-living bias, and the Eurocentric validation trap.
Body Part 2 — The corrective tools from tradition itself — Purvapaksha and Prayojana.
Body Part 3 — The true goal — decolonisation as confidence, treating IKS as a living system (Vishwaguru).
Way Forward — Fund living traditions, judge on own logic, protect via TKDL/Biodiversity Act, keep it rigorous.
Introduction — Note the NEP 2020 push and the IKS Division’s 390 projects; frame the “why and how,” not “accept or reject.”
Body Part 1 — The four blind spots — chronological, linguistic, textual-vs-living bias, and the Eurocentric validation trap.
Body Part 2 — The corrective tools from tradition itself — Purvapaksha and Prayojana.
Body Part 3 — The true goal — decolonisation as confidence, treating IKS as a living system (Vishwaguru).
Way Forward — Fund living traditions, judge on own logic, protect via TKDL/Biodiversity Act, keep it rigorous.
Must mention:
IKS & NEP 2020 ·
Purvapaksha & Prayojana ·
Eurocentric validation trap ·
TKDL / Biological Diversity Act ·
Decolonisation & Vishwaguru
IKS & NEP 2020 ·
Purvapaksha & Prayojana ·
Eurocentric validation trap ·
TKDL / Biological Diversity Act ·
Decolonisation & Vishwaguru
Conclusion hint: Argue that genuine respect for Indian knowledge lies in rigorous, self-confident study — neither dismissing nor flattering the past, but making it a living resource for the present.
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