INTEGRATING INDIAN KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS IN VALUE-BASED EDUCATION TO ENHANCE STUDENTS’ MENTAL HEALTH AND HOLISTIC DEVELOPMENT

School students are experiencing increasing levels of stress, anxiety, and emotional difficulties in recent times. This highlights the need for educational approaches that focus beyond academic performance of students on exams and tests. Value-based education shows great potential as an approach to holistic development by focusing on ethical values, emotional awareness, and social responsibility. This narrative review examines the role of value-based skill training on improving the mental health and overall well-being of students with the help of classic Indian Knowledge Texts like Basavanna’s Vachanas, Hitopadesha and the Panchatantra. The review consolidates existing literature published between 2010 and 2023, and suggests that culturally grounded approaches like ethical storytelling, guided reflection, and life-skills based activities, correlate with improvements in emotional regulation, empathy, resilience, interpersonal relationships, and psychosocial well-being among school students. Furthermore, it has been seen that integrating the indigenous knowledge systems strengthens the cultural identity and sense of belonging in students, contributing to positive mental health and social harmony. This study is indented to explore the effects of longitudinal studies and variations in the implementation of value-based educational programmes. Overall, this review suggests that integrating traditional Indian wisdom with current educational practices provides a culturally relevant framework for promoting the holistic development of students. This approach also aligns with the goals of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and highlights the importance of incorporating value-based skill training programs into school curriculums to foster students who are emotionally resilient, ethically grounded, and socially responsible individuals.