Overview

• The National Council of Educational Research and Training has rolled out "Exploring Society: India and Beyond" for Class 8, covering Indian history from the 13th to 17th centuries in the 2025–26 school year.
• Structured under National Education Policy 2020 and NCFSE 2023 mandates, the text merges history, civics, and geography into an integrated social science curriculum.
• A prefatory note on darker periods encourages students to study episodes of violence and power objectively without attributing blame to modern-day communities.
• Detailed chapters portray Delhi Sultanate and Mughal rulers as complex figures, recounting Babur’s massacres and Aurangzeb’s temple destructions alongside Mughal art and administrative policies.
• Emphasis on resistance narratives brings Sikh Gurus’ defiance, Maratha and tribal uprisings, and profiles of overlooked leaders like Rani Durgavati, Rani Abakka, and Marthanda Varma to the forefront.