Page 538 - SSB Interview: The Complete Guide, Second Edition

formally through school-based sex education. But during the twentieth
century, children started gaining knowledge from friends and the media
informally. However, this informal knowledge was incomplete and increased
the rate of teenage pregnancies in Western countries, mainly after the 1960s.

As a result, sex education was introduced without caring about the intense
opposition from parents and society. The outbreak of Acquired Immuno-

Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus
(HIV) was another reason for the immediate implementation of sex education
in schools. African countries like Swaziland, Botswana, etc., lead the list of

the highest rate of AIDS infection. Most of the global organisations consider
sex education as a vital part of public health by highlighting some important
factors like understanding healthy and unhealthy relationships, respecting the

opposite sex etc.

Sex Education in India — Past and Present

Condition

India is a very religious country. Hinduism and Buddhism are two major

religions that expressed their attitude towards sex to the world. India’s
sexual thoughts came from ancient times itself. The Hindu book “Kama

Sutra”, written by Vatsyayana, is considered to be the standard work on

human sexual behaviour. India’s knowledge about sex is not only
confined to a book, but it is sculpted beautifully on the walls of famous

temples like Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh, Sun Temple in Konark,
Jagdish Mandir in Udaipur, Ellora caves in Maharashtra and many more.

These sculptures are not just carvings, but it was the ancient way of

open sex education.

India is one of the countries with reports of high rates of teenage
pregnancies, sexual abuse and a huge number of HIV-infected people.

But still, sex education in schools is considered an unprincipled act by

society here. Surprisingly, there are many adolescent girls in India who