CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court on Friday sought an explanation from the state government over the delay in preparing and distributing error-free textbooks for students of Classes I to VIII for the 2026-27 academic year, despite 1,678 errors reportedly being detected in the books introduced in June.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Harish Tandon and Justice Chittaranjan Dash directed the state government to file an affidavit within a week, responding to a PIL filed by Bhubaneswar-based human rights activist and advocate Prabir Kumar Das. The court fixed November 9 for the next hearing.
The petition alleged that the state government had failed to take timely steps to replace the error-ridden textbooks introduced under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 framework, leaving lakhs of students dependent on books containing mistakes.
According to the PIL, 55 textbooks prepared by the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) for Classes I to VIII were distributed before large-scale errors came to light in June. Although the Odisha School Education Programme Authority (OSEPA) had uploaded a corrected list of errors on its website, it had failed to adequately address the difficulties faced by students. With numerous corrections spread across textbooks, students were deprived of proper and quality education.
The PIL pointed out that six months of the academic year, which began on April 1, had already elapsed, but the government was yet to prepare, print and distribute error-free textbooks.
It also sought implementation of recommendations made by a high-level inquiry committee to enure preparation and distribution of error-free textbooks.
The committee had recommended a four-stage proofreading mechanism covering academic content, factual accuracy and images, language, and the printer’s final proof.
Each stage would require signed clearance, while the final digitally approved PDF would serve as a locked master copy for printing.