In some schools in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, history books teach that Jesus Christ spent several days in the Himalayas and imbibed knowledge and inspiration for Christianity from Hindu sadhus and sanyasis. That Greek guy Homer's epic, the Iliad, was actually inspired by the Ramayana. And do you know why November 2nd is the blackest day in the history of India? Because that day "kar sevaks were attacked at Ayodhya". Incredulous!!! To think generations the world over have been taught otherwise.

These "breaking-news" revelations are courtesy our Human Resource Development Minister, Dr Murli Manohar Joshi's bid to "Indianise, spiritualise and nationalise" school and college curricula in the country.

Now Dr Joshi's portfolio reads Human Resources Development and Science & Technology and Ocean Development. His contribution to HRD is ensuring that India's Human Resources are completely lacking in knowledge of factual history. Contribution to Science and Development is a move to include Vedic Astrology as a regular science at the university level. Yes, astrology is a very useful subject. It’s not enough that the nation's people are crippled by superstition and ridiculous belief in the star patterns in the sky. Smart Godmen have made careers out of beguiling nitwit politicians by portending their sorry futures. Come to think of it, an astrologer should be included in the cabinet. And Dr. Joshi has not neglected Ocean Development - kids in Rajasthan learn of the Indian Ocean as Hindu Mahasagar (since when does Indian mean Hindu?), the Arabian Sea is Sindhu sagar and the Bay of Bengal is the Ganga Sagar.

Dr. Joshi, there is no such thing as "to indianise", we are already Indians. To spirutalise means "to refine intellectually or morally", and nationalise means "to endow with the character and habits of a nation". The words are in place but the actions have no meaning. Are we to be a nation of misinformed bigots?