NEW DELHI: Tens of thousands of children at Indian schools have been told they can no longer sing popular English nursery rhymes such as Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Baa Baa Black Sheep.

In an attempt to rid schools of what is perceived as malign western influence, the school education minister in the state of Madhya Pradesh, Narottam Mishra, has commissioned a new set of rhymes written by Indians to “infuse a sense of patriotism” among five-year-olds.

For the first time since English-language education was introduced in India by Lord Macaulay in the 19th century, children in Madhya Pradesh state schools will not learn the rhymes imported from England. But there has been no public discussion on the change and some parents disagree.

“The poems [which are being axed] are only about nature, they have nothing to do with patriotism,” Anjali Singh, a parent in the state capital Bhopal, told a local television news channel on Wednesday.

“In these days of globalisation, a child should be exposed to everything, not just what’s local. These poems are a door through which the children can view the wider world.”

A retired English teacher, Professor Zamiruddin, said the rhymes were popular with children. “The old rhymes have survived because we don’t have good ones written in English that are rhythmic and easy-to-learn,” he said. “The government’s decision is so churlish and thoughtless.”

This is not the first time that the Hindu nationalist BJP has stirred a controversy by tinkering with the school curriculum. In neighbouring Gujarat state, school textbooks were rewritten to categorise religious minorities including Muslims, Christians and Parsis as “foreigners” and to extol aspects of Nazism and fascism. A social studies textbook in Gujarat said: “Hitler lent dignity and prestige to the German government within a short time, establishing a strong administrative set-up.”

But unlike in Gujarat, the BJP’s latest move to “nationalise” nursery rhymes may get the approval of its usually vociferous opponents from the left. “I don’t mind if the rhymes are replaced by equally good Indian poems,” scientist Yash Pal told the Hindustan Times. Educationalist Anil Sadgopal, speaking on the CNN-IBN news channel, said culturally specific poems such as Baa Baa Black Sheep could go, but asked: “What’s wrong with Twinkle Twinkle Little Star?”—Dawn/The Guardian News Service