Overview
- The campaign, announced Tuesday, asks schools to counsel families on changing “awkward” or derogatory student names using a curated list of about 2,950 alternatives.
- Officials say changes are voluntary, require written parental consent, and focus on Classes 1–9, with a process to update older marksheets if parents request it.
- Teachers will raise the issue in parent–teacher meetings and School Management Committees, and senior officials will track progress through regular reports.
- Critics, including a senior sociologist and opposition leaders, say the list underrepresents non-Hindu traditions and includes errors such as everyday words, odd or offensive terms, and gender mix-ups.
- Education Minister Madan Dilawar said the list is only suggestive and promised to remove inappropriate entries, while the department estimates 2,000–3,000 students could be affected across government and private schools.