NCERT sets up new textbook panel for Classes 11, 12 Political Science, Sandeep Shastri to head panel

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has shared a new notification regarding the dismantling of the Textbook Development Team (TDT) formed earlier. The new TDT team will draft the Political Science textbooks for Classes 11 and 12.

Under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, the National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCF-SE) was released in August 2023, as part of the curriculum reforms. This new framework will share guidelines on how the syllabus and teaching materials will be drafted across India.

The latest order replaces the previous TDT notification from June 2025 and states that the panel has been dissolved and reconstituted. A new twenty-member team has been formed, headed by Sandeep Shastri, vice president of NITTE, for streamlining the completion of the Class 11 textbooks.

New team composition

The twenty-member team has experts from institutions like Jawaharlal Nehru University, Chanakya University, the National Law University Delhi, Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), Pondicherry University, and other colleges and research bodies across the country.

Vanthangpui Khobung and Subhash Singh of NCERT's Department of Education in Social Sciences (DESS) will serve as members and co-coordinators, respectively. They will manage communication and administrative group matters. The notification also states that with the director's approval, the internal team can bring in outside experts, teachers, or illustrators for specific needs.

Mandate, timeline, oversight

The responsibilities of the committee members will include finalising the syllabus and completing the teaching-learning materials. They will also have to maintain continuity with current textbooks used in earlier classes.

The panel will be expected to take inputs directly from different curricular area groups that cover languages, Indian knowledge systems, and environmental education. Committee members will also be required to conduct thorough research and equally focus on writing, illustration, and editing before any chapter is drafted.

Class 11 textbook completion is due by November 30, 2026, and the Class 12 textbook needs to be completed by July 30, 2027. NCERT’s textbook core group will monitor and review draft chapters. The final textbooks will be approved by NCERT before they are published and distributed to schools.