PESHAWAR: The Elementary and Secondary Education Department is set to remove a whole chapter from a school textbook highlighting the contemporary issues, their causes and veiled hints towards the invisible elements responsible for creating such issues that have made the lives of people miserable in the region, according to sources.

The chapter titled “Da Maujoda Dor Masalay” (problems of the present age) in the Pashto book for grade-10 will be removed on the demand of Jamaat-i-Islami, they said.

The chapter was included in the textbook by the previous ANP-led government to inform the students about the various issues engulfing the society for the last many years, said the sources in the education department.

In the third paragraph on page 65 of the chapter it is stated that due to political instability millions of Afghans were compelled to migrate to Pakistan who brought with them many problems from Afghanistan that still existed in our society.

The text on page 66 conveys that “It is crystal clear that human beings have always used their power and inflicted brutalities on others in the process to impose their religious, political, national and economic supremacy on others. In history whenever any group in any area on the earth started ruling by adopting such practices has left examples of brutalities and inhuman practices that has bowed down the head of human beings in shame”.

Without naming any area or country, it is stated that the power game still continues which has caused huge losses to the society, particularly to the poor people. It further says that rich countries have been using all resources in the region for imposing their agenda and increasing influence in the third world countries.

The students read in the chapter that the people of the third world countries getting financial support to fulfil their daily needs of life are being exploited intentionally or unintentionally, consciously or unconsciously at the hands of the rich countries for their agenda. “Such acts are apparently good and pious, full of benefits in this world and the life after death, but actually the planner behind such acts wanted to spread violence,” it is added.

“As such, the society which couldn’t educate their children due to lack of resources is used at the hands of others for achieving their goals, causing unrest and terrorism in the country,” it states.

In the same chapter, the students are told that due to lack of education, some religious sects have been promoting their causes in the society through use of huge amount of money. It has also been mentioned that in the race of leaving others behind, the religious extremism often causes differences, which is one of the big reasons for unrest in the society.

The writer has also listed the uncontrollable increase in population as one of the problems, stating that having more children and lacking resources most of the people couldn’t provide education to their children. Resultantly, such children become child labourers or beggars. The unchecked population growth results in rising joblessness, which leads to suicides, mental and psychological diseases and drug addiction in the society.

Everything mentioned in the chapter is based on the present day realities, said a senior teacher of a government school. “It will educate the students about the contemporary issues,” he said, adding such issues were discussed in the textbooks for the first time.

“Such issues should be also discussed in the English and Urdu textbooks to educate the students at larger scale,” another senior teacher told Dawn.

When contacted, a senior official in the education department told Dawn that the material given in the chapter was based on reality, but it could create bad impression of the state among the students.

“Actually, different schools of thought are discussed between the lines which could increase hatred in the society,” said an activist of Jamaat-i-Islami, who was one of the members of the team which held meetings with the officials of the education department in this connection. He said that distribution of resources was the real problem, not increase in population. “Linking problems with the population growth is the propaganda of the West,” he said.

Published in Dawn, October 26th, 2014