The government of Madhya Pradesh is considering including “happiness” in the syllabus of high school and upper secondary classes from the next academic session, an official said Friday.
A draft of the books on this subject for grades 9 to 12 is nearing completion, Rajya Anand Sansthan (State Happiness Department) CEO Akhilesh Argal. In 2016, Madhya Pradesh became the first state in the country to set up a department for happiness.
“In November (last year) we gave a presentation on the subject to about 80 teachers or trainers. The following month, we interacted with 80 students from grades 9 to 12 for five days and discussed the concept of the book of happiness. Their response to the subject has been very encouraging,” he said.
Argal said the MP School Education Department, All India Council of Technical Education (AICTE) and other organizations are helping them in the project.
“After finalizing the books, they will be sent to the State Council for Educational Research and Training (SCERT) for approval,” he said.
The subject will be compulsory for the students of all streams from grades 9 to 12, he said, adding that MP could be the first state in the country to introduce this subject in schools.
During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s interaction with key ministers of BJP-ruled states in Varanasi last December, the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, had given a presentation on the works initiated by the Rajya Anand Sansthan and the state’s plan to introduce happiness as a subject in the school’s syllabus, Argal said.
