Criticism Critics of the IKS division have asserted that its curricula pedal
pseudoscience and
pseudohistory, do not constitute a genuine scholarly "decolonisation" programme, are a tool of indoctrination by the
Hindutva ideology of the ruling
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and will economically and professionally disadvantage Indian graduates in the workforce. Writing for
The Wire, Vasudevan Mukunth criticised the introduction of a new textbook under the auspices of IKS as a "Trojan horse of pseudoscience". The textbook in question dismisses as a myth the commonly accepted belief that "aeronautics was developed by
Wright Brothers in 1903," asserting instead that 5,000 years before the Wright Brothers, "Maharshi Bhardwajan wrote an epic called Yantra Sarvasva and aeronautics is a part of the epic [...] Yantra Sarvasva is not available now but out of whatever we know about it, we can believe that planes were a reality in Vedic age." The textbook also asserts that "It’s a Myth that
Theory of Gravity was discovered by
Isaac Newton in 1666 AD; the truth is that thousands of years before Newton, a number of epics were written on the gravitational force and we can find the evidence in the
Rig Veda". Manasi Thapliyal Navani, a professor in the School of Education Studies at
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar University Delhi, has criticized the IKS curriculum as not being genuinely decolonial, stating that "Indigenous knowledge education or decolonisation projects begin with a critical dialogue with history and with the dominant forces that have shaped modern disciplines," and because IKS curricula lack such critical engagement, "the whole project essentially boils down to becoming one of indoctrination." Jaheer Mukthar, an assistant professor of economics at
Kristu Jayanti College in
Bangalore, asserted that "the government is clearly using the textbook as a tool for propagating the Hindutva agenda". In his article for The Wire, Mukunth also warned that an IKS education "would render [Indian] graduates even more unemployable, or under-employed, than they already are". Critics have also alleged that it serves to disseminate propaganda to further the political agenda of India's ruling
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its far-right
Hindutva/Hindu nationalist ideology. and decolonise Indian education in a way that reduces undue Western influences. Talking to
India Today,
IIT Mandi director Laxmidhar Behera said, "Principles from IKS, such as dharma-centric design, ecological balance, and cognitive awareness, can enrich technological thinking by aligning it with human values and environmental sustainability." He further added, "IKS emphasises harmony between human activity and nature." == See also ==