Kolkata: The life of Syama Prasad Mookerjee should be included in Bengal’s syllabus and the Singur movement removed from it, chief minister Suvendu Adhikari said at a programme to mark the 125th birth anniversary of the founder of Bharatiya Jana Sangh at his alma mater, Mitra Institution, Bhowanipore.“Syama Prasad Mookerjee and his contribution to the creation of West Bengal should be there in text books from school to university. Students should learn about his vision of an undivided India, his legislative speeches, and his role as a minister from the next academic year,” the CM said.He also stressed that the history of those who drove the Tatas away from Singur should not be taught to students. “Singur should be removed from the syllabus. This is my proposal. The decision has to be taken by the syllabus committee, not by any political neta. I have asked the school education and higher education ministers and their secretaries to look into this,” Adhikari said.The erstwhile Trinamool Congress govt had in 2017 included the anti-land acquisition movement in Singur, which was led by Mamata Banerjee, then the principal opposition politician in the Left Front-governed Bengal, in the Class VIII history curriculum of the Bengal secondary education board.The movement, which continued from 2006 to 2008 and forced the Tatas to abandon their Nano car project in Singur, formed part of the chapter titled “Ateet O Oitijhyo” (Past & Heritage).Since BJP was elected to office in Bengal, MLAs from the party have been demanding the removal of the Singur episode from the syllabus. After taking over as school education minister, Dipak Barman had hinted that the department was considering removing the chapter.Speaking about Mitra Institution, Bhowanipore, where Mookerjee had studied from 1906 till 1917 and also served on the managing committee from 1924 to 1938, the CM said the govt would protect the heritage building. “The previous MLA and MP did nothing to preserve this heritage,” said Adhikari, who had won from Bhowanipore in the recent assembly polls. The constitiuency was represented by former CM Banerjee for 15 years since 2011.“Restoring Mookerjee’s memory is our top priority. If required, we will speak with the Jharkhand govt to restore his property in Madhupur,” the CM said. The state govt, he said, has purchased land in Mookerjee’s hometown, Jirat in Hooghly, to set up a library in his memory.A 10-member committee, led by the CM, has been formed to plan year-long celebrations of Mookerjee’s 125th birth anniversary. Ten experts from different fields, all from outside the govt, have been inducted as members of the committee, whose member-secretary is the Bengal chief secretary. The govt has allotted Rs 200 crore for the birth anniversary celebrations, the CM said.Calcutta University vice-chancellor Asutosh Ghosh said on Monday the university would propose setting up a Syama Prasad Mookerjee Chair-Professor post. Mookerjee became CU’s youngest VC at the age of 33 and served from Aug 8, 1934, to Aug 8, 1938.The university also plans to revive the Syama Prasad Mookerjee endowment lecture. “The Syama Prasad Mookerjee Scholarship-Lectureship was created by Rai Bahadur GN Banerjee on Nov 11, 1954, who had donated Rs 500. Thereafter, Mookerjee’s daughter Arati Bhattacharya had donated Rs 5,000 for the lecture, which she herself delivered. A committee was formed for this purpose, and a lecture was organised every year from 2001 to 2005. It was abruptly stopped thereafter. We will reintroduce it soon.”
