The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has declared a week-long, statewide ‘Save Education Campaign’ from July 9 to 15, demanding stringent action for those accountable for widespread mistakes in school textbooks from classes 1 to 8.
The state’s opposition party slammed the ruling BJP government for failing to recall the allegedly error-ridden textbooks even after the new academic session had begun, while reiterating their demand for the resignation of School and Mass Education Minister Nityananda Gond.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, BJD MLA and party’s senior general secretary Byomkesh Ray, alongside youth wing president Chinmay Sahu and student wing chief Ipsita Sahu, took the state government to task over the brewing crisis.
“The state government has taken zero steps to recall these flawed textbooks. There is absolutely no coordination between the Chief Minister, the Education Minister, and the department secretary,” Ray alleged.
The BJD leadership highlighted the growing anxiety among parents regarding their children’s academic future and urged families to actively support the party’s ‘Save Education Campaign.’
According to an official party statement, the BJD will organise protests across the state from July 9 to 15 under the campaign.
The party’s core demands include the immediate recall of the allegedly defective textbooks and the distribution of corrected, error-free editions within a month.
“Parents and students will hold Chief Minister Mohan Majhi, Minister Gond, and the department secretary accountable for jeopardizing our children’s future,” the party stated, warning that the state’s youth and student would launch a fierce agitation against the BJP government.
The CPI(M)’s Odisha unit, meanwhile, staged protests in the capital city Bhubaneswar, also calling for the immediate resignation of the school and mass education minister over the textbook fiasco.
Attributing the errors to a rushed attempt to roll out the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, CPI(M) State Secretary Suresh Chandra Panigrahy claimed that seasoned authors, academicians, subject matter experts, and editors were sidelined during the process.
“The double-engine government hastily compiled 55 primary school textbooks without adhering to standard protocols just to force the implementation of National Education Policy-2020 in the state. Veteran writers, educators, experts, reviewers, and proofreaders were completely shut out,” Panigrahy alleged.
“These blunders are the direct result of using AI in an unscientific, reckless manner. This goes beyond mere bureaucratic negligence – it is a severe offense against Odisha’s schooling system, the future of our students, and the pride of the Odia language,” Panigrahy asserted.
He further demanded an immediate recall of the books, the swift distribution of corrected editions, and strict action for those behind the failure.
