The decades-old India-China border dispute over Arunachal Pradesh has cast its shadow on the geography textbook for 10th grade in Maharashtra. In a major gaffe, the north-eastern State, which China says is part of its territory, has been omitted from the map of India in the textbook, printed by Balbharti, bureau of textbook production, and used by more than 15 lakh students affiliated to the Maharashtra State Board.
The erroneous map shows Arunachal Pradesh as not only “missing” from the country’s territorial domain but also as being part of Chinese territory.
Taking a serious note of the lapse, the State government on Wednesday sought a clarification from the Chairman of the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education. “I have sought a clarification from the Board Chairman, asking him to explain how this error came about,” Minister for School Education Rajendra Darda said.
Officials of the Board of Secondary and Higher Education were unavailable for comments.