Now, Gayatri Mantra to be part of morning prayers in Haryana schools

After introducing Gita shlokas or verses in textbooks, Haryana education department now wants to introduce Gayatri Mantra during morning prayers.

Speaking on the move, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said, “Shiksha ka star kaise ooncha ho, shiksha mein naitikta kaise aaye, sanskar kaise usme daale jaayen, uss naate se bahut se vishyon pe shiksha vibhag ne vichar kiya, uss mein ye sab baaten shaamil hain. (While pondering on how to improve current education standards, introduce ethics and culture, the Education Department brainstormed on several ideas and this (Gayatri Mantra) was a part that discussion).”

Confirming the move, Haryana's Education Minister Ram Bilas Sharma informed that Gayatri Mantra will henceforth be part of the morning prayers conducted in the schools.

"We've had meetings with senior officials of education dept over this. Gayatri Mantra is a gift by our saints and sages to the world. We'll issue a notification on it by Tuesday," said Sharma.

"Now, we are going to add Gayatri Mantra in the prayer meetings of schools so that the children can understand its meaning," he added. 

In 2015, the Khattar government decided to introduce lessons from 'Gita' and other holy books would in school syllabus of schools. After facing opposition from several counters, it was finaly introduced in syllabus in June, 2016.

Sharma said that including Gita shlokas in the school syllabus soon after the formation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Haryana yielded positive results.