“Education is not just the imparting of facts but the cultivation of a soul that feels for the nation and our new teaching guidelines ensure that this soul is rooted in the indigenous soil of India,” says a senior educationist at a government school in southwest Delhi.
After ruling Delhi for a decade, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was dethroned by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) last year, and one area where the impact of the regime change is clearly felt is the school curricula, where a clear rightward shift has taken place. Among the significant changes brought by the BJP government in school education is the introduction of the Rashtraneeti Syllabuswhich contains the historical background of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and biographies of former Sangh leaders and party members. With a focus on nationalism, the Rashtraneeti curriculum is designed for students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 studying in schools under the Directorate of Education of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, with the aim of instilling civic consciousness, national consciousness and an understanding of India’s political history.
A special section entitled “RSS@100‘ was recorded to mark the organization’s 100th anniversary. It traces the organization’s origins from 1925, its founding principles and philosophy. The chapters cover the organization’s involvement in social services and profile Veer Savarkar, Subhas Chandra Bose, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Shyama Prasad Mukherjee. There is also a special section on former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, highlighting his association with the RSS. This is a significant departure from previous Deshbhakti curricula, which focused on stories of revolutionaries and unsung freedom fighters.
The ideological turn
Starting from an ad hoc process that relied on teacher manuals and activity manuals, the Rashtraneeti curricula has standardized textbooks and master trainer manuals. According to the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) circular, training for master trainers began in July last year. Textbooks with SCERT-designed modules have also been introduced in a phased manner from November 2025 presentation According to the council’s information on the curriculum, the core components are civic consciousness, democratic participation, ethical citizenship, inclusivity, nation-building and respect for the constitution. The curriculum divides students’ academic obligations into four phases. This is the elementary level from kindergarten through 2nd grade, which focuses on civic awareness; The preparatory phase for grades 3 to 5 focused on civic responsibility. the middle level, grades 6 to 8, focused on civic engagement and leadership; and the secondary education from grades 9 to 12 focused on strategic thinking, public policy and practical governance.
Among the significant changes brought by the BJP government in school education is the introduction of the Rashtraneeti Syllabuswhich contains the historical background of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and biographies of former Sangh leaders and party members.
The Training manual Directs each school to form a Rashtraneeti Committee with the principal, mentor teacher, four phase coordinators, student representatives and supporting teachers for each club. The SCERT claims that this syllabus is in line with the National Education Policy 2020, Sustainable Development Goalsand Universal Design of Learning. A teacher who teaches at a government school in central Delhi confirmed this and shared how specific in-charges are being appointed for different clubs, thereby reducing the obligation of each teacher to conduct these activities and train, which was previously required. A report prepared by Dr. BR Ambedkar CM SHRI School provides insight into how the curriculum is put into practice. Under this, sub-committees will be formed namely Virasat, Nirmaya, Sahitya, Neeti, Eco-Club, Prahari and the Inclusive Committee. For each committee, a captain is selected from students at four different levels. Each committee has designated tasks to accomplish: Virasat focuses on the study of Indian cultural heritage, Nirmaya promotes health and well-being, Sahitya promotes Indian literary traditions, Neeti emphasizes ethics and good governance, Eco-Club promotes environmental awareness, Prahari ensures discipline and safety on campus; and the Inclusive Committee, which advocates for equity and acceptance among students. Priya, a PhD student at Delhi University who studies gender and education, said this was like “mini RSS shakhas being created in schools”. She added that the Devanagiri nature of this curriculum was evident even though Delhi accommodates students from across the country.
Old wine in a new bottle
The changes in curricula are in line with changes in other areas, such as healthcare Mohalla Clinics are replaced by Ayushman Arogya Mandir. The National Students’ Association of India (NSUI) strongly criticized the decision to include the history of the RSS in the Rashtraneeti program syllabus. NSUI President Varun Choudhary claimed the government was whitewashing history. He said: “True education reinforces the values of the Constitution, democracy, equality and justice – it does not glorify organizations that have consistently opposed these values.” NSUI will firmly counter this conspiracy to mislead students and spread hatred and we will raise our voice against it across Delhi.”
The Rashtraneeti curriculum and other programs were officially launched in the year Namo Vidya Utsav at Bharat Mandapam on September 18, 2025by Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and state Education Minister Ashish Sood. Previously, in March 2025, SooooIn a media interaction, he alleged that the previous government’s machinations were for political gain and amounted to self-promotion. Besides the Rashtraneeti curriculum, which is seen as a replacement for the Deshbhakti curriculum, the Science of Living curriculum replaces the Happiness curriculum that the previous government had integrated into school activities. The Happiness curriculum was launched by the Dalai Lama in 2018 for students in kindergarten through 8th grade. The previous government portrayed it as an innovative approach to education, although its critics said it led to no noticeable improvement in academic performance.
The Science of Living Program. includes yoga, meditation and lessons on moral values. The education minister said the program will include the teachings of prominent spiritual gurus such as Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, founder of the Art of Living Foundation, and Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev of the Isha Foundation, as well as yoga classes by Baba Ramdev. However, it is widely considered to be an expansion of the Happiness Curriculum to include new topics such as digital detoxification, legal awareness and ancient Indian knowledge systems or Panch Kosha, and it extends from kindergarten to 12th grade. Explaining the key differences between the two, a teacher at a government school in southwest Delhi said the new curriculum focuses heavily on indigenous systems, namely the Panch Kosha. She added that emotional well-being and physical fitness through yoga are a priority. She pointed out that it is good that this new curriculum is also applicable to senior secondary school students as it helps older students learn stress management mechanisms.
Besides the Rashtraneeti curriculum, which is seen as a replacement for the Deshbhakti curriculum, the Science of Living curriculum replaces the Happiness curriculum that the previous government had integrated into school activities.
A teacher at a school in East Delhi said in support: “We are finally moving from a curriculum of convenience to a curriculum of conviction to ensure that our students know the true architects of the Indian consciousness.”
New priorities, old ideologies
It is learned that teachers have been directed to focus more on regular subjects rather than special curricula, which had previously proved burdensome for them. According to a teacher at a government school in Kanti Nagar, East Delhi, Science of Living activities are to be organized every two months and are a significant departure from the weekly activities that had to be conducted as part of the happiness curriculum. She said it was less stressful because they could focus on completing the curriculum and prioritize activities only when they were needed.
Another initiative, New era of entrepreneurial ecosystem and vision (NEEV) was launched for students from Class 8 onwards to get vocational training in start-ups and industries and provide additional Rs 20,000 as seed funding for student groups. This is in line with the Rs 2,000 that students received under the Business Blasters scheme from the previous government. Asked whether a regime change in Delhi has led to a different ideological orientation of education, political commentator Ashutosh said: “Ideally it shouldn’t happen, but this government is driven by an ideology that looks at education from a different perspective and also competition policy has kicked in.” Ashutosh also said that the syllabus change was also an attempt at rebranding. He explained that a name change would not lead to a significant change in the curriculum and that it was essentially about taking credit from the previous government and putting its own stamp on it.
However, changes are not implemented uniformly. A teacher from a school affiliated to the Delhi government reported that the Happiness curriculum was continuing and she had never heard of the introduction or implementation of the Science of Living or Rashtraneeti curricula. On the other hand, another teacher from Kanti Nagar, East Delhi said that new manuals and reference materials were introduced and training sessions were conducted. She said it was the same idea but the approach and methodology was different.
Second year student of Media Studies at CHRIST (Deemed to be University), BRC, Bangalore. A trained Kathak dancer, theater artist and political nerd.