Eighth grade students will now study how corruption in the judiciary and the mounting backlog of cases affect India’s justice delivery system.
For the first time, the new Social Science textbook released by National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) for Class 8 includes a detailed section on corruption within the judiciary and the growing number of pending court cases. The revised book is expected to reach schools soon.
Council members had discussed the proposal in detail before introducing changes to the existing curriculum. Along with updates to earlier content, a new section now explains corruption at different levels of the judiciary and the systemic challenges facing courts.
CORRUPTION AND BACKLOG IN FOCUS
The chapter titled ‘The Role of the Judiciary in Our Society’ now identifies corruption as a serious concern affecting judicial credibility. It also outlines the scale of case pendency in courts and explains the reasons behind it — including shortage of judges, complex legal procedures, and inadequate infrastructure.
According to the revised text, the Supreme Court of India has around 81,000 pending cases. High Courts together have over 6 million pending cases, while lower courts are burdened with more than 40 million cases.
Through this chapter, students will be introduced to the real-world challenges confronting the justice system, going beyond just its structure and functions.
ACCOUNTABILITY AND BALANCE OF POWERS
Earlier editions primarily explained the judiciary’s structure, powers, and its role as the guardian of the Constitution. The new version retains this foundation but expands the discussion to include judicial accountability.
It now elaborates on how judges of High Courts and the Supreme Court can be held accountable, the Code of Conduct governing them, complaint mechanisms, and the removal process. The chapter also explains how courts have struck down laws passed by Parliament when found unconstitutional, reinforcing the separation of powers between the legislature, executive, and judiciary.
The updated edition has been approved and will soon be available in the market.
