Farmer and her land

"A farmer wants a loan from the bank to dig a well in her land."

"Every citizen has the right to express her thoughts, cast her vote or contest elections."

These sentences may shock some, and it seems some are even finding them outrageous. After growing up learning the boring lessons on how mother washed me and combed my hair, and how father worked in the farm all day, this is indeed a refreshing change.

"A number of new NCERT textbooks for class I to class XII have been designed to encourage children to question social prejudices, discrimination and inequalities. This is a conscious reversal of the earlier trend where textbooks reinforced prevailing stereotypes", notes Deepti Priya Mehrotra in India Together (article dated 5 October 2006).