'B Is For Bomb' Book Outrages India Parents

LUCKNOW, India -- Angry parents are demanding to know why their kids are being taught about bombs and knives at nursery schools in a northern Indian state.

They complain that a book on Hindi language alphabets for children aged 4 to 5 says that "B" stands for bomb and "Ch" for "Chaku," or knife. Pictures accompany the words.

Ram Authar Dixit, president of the Parents-Student Welfare Association of Gurukul Academy in Uttar Pradesh state, said Sunday that the national education board was investigating how such a book was cleared for private nursery schools.

More than 100 schools in the state have been using the book.

Javed Alam, a board official, blamed the book publisher for the lapse.

The Federal Board of Secondary Education issues broad guidelines to state and private schools relating to books, but leaves the content to publishers. It steps in in case of complaints, Alam said.

"It is the responsibility of the education board to provide clean books to the students," said Dixit, a parent.

The publisher could not be immediately reached for comment.

"Children have an impressionable mind. If students are taught about bombs and knives at this stage this would develop a negative mindset for them,' Ananya Tiwari, a child psychologist, told The Associated Press in Lucknow, the state capital.

(This version CORRECTS Corrects Dixit's first name to Ram instead of Rav.)

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Comments

[Cory Gudwin]

11:14 PM on 04/30/2012

Most Palestinian school children are taught three songs glorifying the killing of Isrealis.

[Janetgv]

11:06 AM on 05/01/2012

Most Israeli children learn about hatred from their parents.

[Cory Gudwin]

11:37 AM on 05/01/2012

I you lived in israel you would know that is untrue. The hate comes from witnessing terror attacks and knowing terror victims families. Hate of Jews is public policy for the Palestinians.

[Kneeanderthal]

08:51 AM on 04/30/2012

And here I thought that B was for Beheading.

[nsmith11118888]

04:47 AM on 04/30/2012

Lol! Reminds me of a conversation from the TV show "missing", where the 2 CIA operatives have gotten married, and expecting their first child, are trying to learn how to "watch their language" so they can set a good example, to paraphrase:

CIA expectant dad: Oh, shhhh....shoot!

CIA expectant mom: You're learning. "Shoot" is good, as long as it's not followed with "to kill."

[pinkibus]

12:00 AM on 04/30/2012

B is not for bomb. It is for Bush Bush means liar, economic catastrophe and various other things of that nature whereas bomb is an inanimate object which is harmless unless dropped from a great height.

[Oblongato]

08:53 AM on 04/30/2012

...or concealed, roadside.

[wbthacker]

11:14 AM on 05/01/2012

F is for Fanatic

FYI, Bush isn't running for office. Maybe you should "move on" to "R is for Romney".

[smp276dp]

07:46 PM on 04/29/2012

So India will be the new terror palace?
We will see.

[hottingers]

06:00 PM on 04/29/2012

Texas Board of education books?

[oldwolf49]

04:58 PM on 04/29/2012

Tis the times we live in, I see nothing to be upset about.

[DrakeUnlimited]

04:36 PM on 04/29/2012

What a disgrace.

[realitytrumpsbull]

03:12 PM on 04/29/2012

Damn insurgents trying to indoctrinate the kids at the tender age of 5...

[Luuke]

06:35 AM on 04/30/2012

insurgents ??? Clingin at straws I see...They said it was a lapse by the publisher and will be amended.....Go back to your state side pastors church and see what he's got to say :-)

[cintirich]

08:55 AM on 04/30/2012

Lapse? If you really believe that I've got a bridge to sell you...

[Vgman]

03:09 PM on 04/29/2012

Being taught a word is not a problem. Bomb is a word as is knife. Neither need to be negative. As usual, parents get riled up over the wrong things.

[Jason Hankins]

04:52 PM on 04/29/2012

exactly.. its about context.. knives can be used to cut meat or vegitables for eating, a bomb is used in everything from looney tunes to dick tracey

[GaryNOVA]

02:43 PM on 04/29/2012

C is for cookie, that's good enough for me.

S is for Surface to Air Missile, that's ... la la di dah *cough* *ehem*

[Cooltoad]

06:04 PM on 04/29/2012

And "I" is for Intercontinental ballistic missle with a nuclear warhead.

[pinkibus]

11:58 PM on 04/29/2012

GaryNOVA - I thought S was for Santorum. Santorum makes surface to air missiles look less than horrific.

[ThermoChemist]

02:36 PM on 04/29/2012

"Javed Alam, a board official, blamed the book publisher for the lapse."
===========

Should we see if these new school books were published by a company in Texas?

: (

[realitytrumpsbull]

03:13 PM on 04/29/2012

Who provided the materials TO the publisher to begin with? Aren't they just a printing house?

[gotch]

02:07 PM on 04/29/2012

Wow! Ridiculous authors. Doesn't take bright minds to not associate the alphabet to horrific words and images. Kids are so impressionable that they will remember these words and pictures.

What about "I" is for idiots, showing pictures of the authors of the book.

[accelerando]

01:50 PM on 04/29/2012

Ahimsa in the new India: be nice to cows, eat vegetarian, go nuclear?

[realitytrumpsbull]

03:14 PM on 04/29/2012

Happy Bright Flash Of Light Day, citizen! Peace!

[Cooltoad]

06:05 PM on 04/29/2012

Talk softly, carry a big stick. In India's case, "try invading a fourth unsuccessful time, Pakistan..."

[tkns]

01:48 PM on 04/29/2012

Did the new Texas books get shipped there by mistake??