India, April 18 -- Facing criticism from southern states for giving Hindi titles to English textbooks, the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) on Friday defended the move, saying the modifications were inspired by musical instruments such as Santoor, Mridang, Tabla and Veena, and classical ragas (melodic patterns) like Poorvi "to instil a sense of Indian identity" in students.

Earlier this week, Kerala general education minister V Sivankutty criticised NCERT's move to give Hindi titles to English-medium textbook and accused the Union government of cultural imposition and sabotaging the country's linguistic diversity. "The titles of the textbooks are not mere names; they shape the perception and imagination of ch...