A controversial decision to excise the torso from an image of the Indus Valley ‘dancing girl’ in Indian school textbooks has been reversed following public outcry. The original image, showing a bronze figurine dating to approximately 2500 BCE, was cropped to show only the head in 2023 editions of history texts used by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT). Critics accused the council of prudish censorship.
After sustained criticism from historians, archaeologists and social media campaigns, the full image has been reinstated in digital versions and will appear in reprints. British Museum curator Dr. Eleanor Harrison, an expert in South Asian antiquities, described the reversal as “a victory for evidence-based education” and said the original depiction “reflects the artistic and cultural sophistication of the Indus Valley civilisation without anachronistic moral judgement.
” The incident underscores ongoing tensions between educational content and cultural sensitivities in India, where the government has faced accusations of rewriting history to align with Hindu nationalist narratives. NCERT officials stated the cropping was a “layout error” and not deliberate censorship. The dancing girl, discovered at Mohenjo-daro in 1926, remains an iconic symbol of the subcontinent’s ancient heritage.
UK heritage experts have welcomed the correction as a step towards preserving historical integrity.
