CBSE issues statement after Class 9 chapter on dating, relationships goes viral: 'Baseless'

The chapter also elaborated on modern dating lingos including ‘ghosting’, ‘catfishing’ and ‘cyberbullying’. (Image: @nashpateee/X)

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) issued a clarification after a screenshot of a Class 9 value education textbook featuring a chapter on dating and relationships created a buzz on social media. The chapter, titled ‘Dating and Relationships (Understanding Yourself and the Other Person) intrigued the internet as it wasn't something conventional or a traditional subject in CBSE high-school curriculum.

As the post shared by a user named Khushi on X gained traction online, CBSE reacted to it and called it "baseless" and "incorrect".

"A section of the media is wrongly attributing a book to be a publication of CBSE containing objectionable material on dating and relationships according to the reports. This is totally baseless and incorrect. The contents of the chapter which are going viral on Social Media are in fact from a book titled A Guide to Self Awareness and Empowerment written by Gagan Deep Kaur and Published by G Ram Books (P) Ltd. Educational Publishers. The CBSE neither publishes any books nor recommends books of any private publishers," CBSE said in the statement.

Clarification pic.twitter.com/hNbZdbM5P8

— CBSE HQ (@cbseindia29) February 2, 2024

CBSE also tagged the Ministry of Education and Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan in the post.

Meanwhile, apart from making the student understand the nuance of dating and relationships, the chapter also elaborated on modern dating lingos, including, ‘ghosting’, ‘catfishing’ and ‘cyberbullying’. 

“The biggest downside of getting into a serious relationship during teenage years is the possible heartbreak it may cause. At this age, a teenager does not have the skills required to deal with rejection and breakups. While an adult may manage to carry on with their life, for a teenager, such an experience can cause long-term scars which stay with them for many years to come and colour their judgement about people and relationships in a profound way,” an excerpt from the chapter read.

See the post here:

pic.twitter.com/WcllP4vMn3

— khushi (@nashpateee) January 30, 2024

No points in guessing that the post grabbed a lot of eyeballs and went viral with over seven lakh views. Social media users flooded the comments section with amusing, bewildered and intrigued opinions.

"This happens in CBSE board only here our teachers skipped the reproduction chapter," a user wrote. Another user commented, "Gen Z ka zamaana hai, kuch bhi ho sakta hai."

"Where to get admission form?" a third user questioned. A fourth user remarked, "That's why kids nowadays are having crush and love and we're still single (there's was no book to teach us)."

Another person added, "There's should be a chapter on never give another chance to cheaters, or he/she broke your heart once they'll do it again."

Reacting to the viral post, Tinder India wrote, "Next chapter : how to deal with breakups."