Odisha school textbooks for Classes 1-8 had 1,741 errors despite Rs 175 crore printing cost
Odisha government school textbooks for Classes 1 to 8 contained 1,741 errors, even as the state spent Rs 175 crore on their printing and publication, School and Mass Education Minister Nityanand Gond informed the Assembly on Friday.
The disclosure came in a written reply to questions raised by Congress MLA Sofia Firdous and other legislators. The errors include grammatical, typographical, and spelling mistakes, along with factual and conceptual errors identified across textbooks.
According to the figures presented by the minister, 1,075 errors were grammatical, typographical, or spelling-related, while five were classified as factual or conceptual errors. Another 661 suggestions were recorded for improving the textbooks.
Class 8 Science textbook records highest number of errors
The Class 8 Science textbook accounted for the highest number of errors among the books specifically listed by the government, with 294 errors detected.
The Class 7 Urdu textbook had 121 errors, followed by the Class 8 Sanskrit textbook with 114. The Class 6 Social Science textbook had 98 errors, while the Class 7 Sanskrit textbook recorded 92 errors.
The minister said the errors were detected after the textbooks had been printed and distributed to students. Corrigenda and supplementary material were subsequently provided to teachers, while the process of distributing revised textbooks is underway.
Textbook error count rises from earlier figures
The latest figure of 1,741 is higher than the numbers disclosed earlier in the controversy. A corrigendum issued by the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) had initially listed 1,678 errors. The number later rose to 1,731 after an administrative inquiry examined the matter. The government subsequently identified additional errors during a detailed scrutiny undertaken while preparing revised editions.
The development also contradicts the earlier assertion by School and Mass Education Department Secretary N Tirumala Naik that the number of errors was considerably lower than the figure being cited during the controversy. Naik had acknowledged mistakes in the books and said the government was working to provide corrected material to students.
Inquiry flags gaps in textbook preparation process
An inquiry into the textbook controversy has also raised questions about how the errors escaped multiple stages of scrutiny.
According to the inquiry report accessed through an RTI application, some resource persons were assigned overlapping responsibilities as writers, reviewers, proofreaders and final subject experts. The report said such overlap weakened the review process and made it possible for errors to remain undetected.
The committee also flagged the compressed timeline for preparing the books. The report said subject experts in the latest exercise were given only one day to review the final manuscript, compared with a much longer review period during earlier textbook development exercises. It also pointed to inadequate page-by-page verification between printer proofs and final printed copies.
The panel further noted that the latest textbook exercise did not involve field testing and that there were no written records showing close supervision of the development process by senior officers.
Government suspends officials, orders disciplinary action
The government has taken administrative action following the detection of the errors. Gond said the Directorate of Teacher Education and State Council of Educational Research and Training were responsible for publishing the textbooks, which were printed based on drafts prepared by the council.
After errors surfaced following printing and distribution, the government suspended the then director and three assistant directors. Disciplinary proceedings were also initiated against six other assistant directors, according to the minister.
The minister said the government has introduced additional safeguards for future editions, including fact-checking by subject experts and language scrutiny by linguistic experts. Revised editions incorporating corrections are being printed and distributed to students.
Factual errors also found in school booksThe controversy is not limited to spelling or typographical mistakes. The government has acknowledged factual and conceptual errors in the textbooks.
Among the issues identified were errors involving the photograph of the Odisha Legislative Assembly, the location of the Niyamgiri Hills and the identification of the Konark Sun Temple. Corrected information has been circulated to schools through a corrigendum for reference by teachers and students.
Textbook controversy triggers protests in OdishaThe errors have triggered protests and political criticism in the state, with student and youth groups demanding accountability over the preparation and distribution of the textbooks.
The controversy intensified after an inquiry report highlighted weaknesses in the academic review and approval process. The Biju Janata Dal also staged protests over the issue and demanded the resignation of the School and Mass Education Minister.
The latest Assembly disclosure has now put the scale of the problem on record: 1,741 errors were identified in textbooks for Classes 1 to 8 after Rs 175 crore was spent on their printing and publication. The government's revised editions and additional verification measures are intended to prevent a repeat of the lapses in the next round of textbook preparation.
The disclosure came in a written reply to questions raised by Congress MLA Sofia Firdous and other legislators. The errors include grammatical, typographical, and spelling mistakes, along with factual and conceptual errors identified across textbooks.
According to the figures presented by the minister, 1,075 errors were grammatical, typographical, or spelling-related, while five were classified as factual or conceptual errors. Another 661 suggestions were recorded for improving the textbooks.
Class 8 Science textbook records highest number of errors
The Class 8 Science textbook accounted for the highest number of errors among the books specifically listed by the government, with 294 errors detected.
The Class 7 Urdu textbook had 121 errors, followed by the Class 8 Sanskrit textbook with 114. The Class 6 Social Science textbook had 98 errors, while the Class 7 Sanskrit textbook recorded 92 errors.
The minister said the errors were detected after the textbooks had been printed and distributed to students. Corrigenda and supplementary material were subsequently provided to teachers, while the process of distributing revised textbooks is underway.
Textbook error count rises from earlier figures
The latest figure of 1,741 is higher than the numbers disclosed earlier in the controversy. A corrigendum issued by the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) had initially listed 1,678 errors. The number later rose to 1,731 after an administrative inquiry examined the matter. The government subsequently identified additional errors during a detailed scrutiny undertaken while preparing revised editions.
The development also contradicts the earlier assertion by School and Mass Education Department Secretary N Tirumala Naik that the number of errors was considerably lower than the figure being cited during the controversy. Naik had acknowledged mistakes in the books and said the government was working to provide corrected material to students.
Inquiry flags gaps in textbook preparation process
According to the inquiry report accessed through an RTI application, some resource persons were assigned overlapping responsibilities as writers, reviewers, proofreaders and final subject experts. The report said such overlap weakened the review process and made it possible for errors to remain undetected.
The committee also flagged the compressed timeline for preparing the books. The report said subject experts in the latest exercise were given only one day to review the final manuscript, compared with a much longer review period during earlier textbook development exercises. It also pointed to inadequate page-by-page verification between printer proofs and final printed copies.
The panel further noted that the latest textbook exercise did not involve field testing and that there were no written records showing close supervision of the development process by senior officers.
Government suspends officials, orders disciplinary action
The government has taken administrative action following the detection of the errors. Gond said the Directorate of Teacher Education and State Council of Educational Research and Training were responsible for publishing the textbooks, which were printed based on drafts prepared by the council.
After errors surfaced following printing and distribution, the government suspended the then director and three assistant directors. Disciplinary proceedings were also initiated against six other assistant directors, according to the minister.
The minister said the government has introduced additional safeguards for future editions, including fact-checking by subject experts and language scrutiny by linguistic experts. Revised editions incorporating corrections are being printed and distributed to students.
Factual errors also found in school booksThe controversy is not limited to spelling or typographical mistakes. The government has acknowledged factual and conceptual errors in the textbooks.
Among the issues identified were errors involving the photograph of the Odisha Legislative Assembly, the location of the Niyamgiri Hills and the identification of the Konark Sun Temple. Corrected information has been circulated to schools through a corrigendum for reference by teachers and students.
Textbook controversy triggers protests in OdishaThe errors have triggered protests and political criticism in the state, with student and youth groups demanding accountability over the preparation and distribution of the textbooks.
The controversy intensified after an inquiry report highlighted weaknesses in the academic review and approval process. The Biju Janata Dal also staged protests over the issue and demanded the resignation of the School and Mass Education Minister.
The latest Assembly disclosure has now put the scale of the problem on record: 1,741 errors were identified in textbooks for Classes 1 to 8 after Rs 175 crore was spent on their printing and publication. The government's revised editions and additional verification measures are intended to prevent a repeat of the lapses in the next round of textbook preparation.
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