The Kacharj Chandra Party (CJP) has expanded its 'Fix Schools' campaign to the state of Odisha. CJP Co-coordinator Saurav Das arrived in Bhubaneswar, where he visited government schools and supported students protesting over errors in school textbooks.
Saurav Das demanded the resignation of Odisha Education Minister Nitinanda Gonda, insisting on accountability after a large number of errors were discovered in the educational materials. 1,678 factual, typographical, and printing errors were identified in textbooks for classes 1 through 8.
The dispute over school textbooks in Odisha has been ongoing for several months. The student organization Navanirmana Yuva Chhatra Sanghatan (NYCS) continuously holds protests demanding improvements to the education system and accountability for errors in the books. NYCS has also called for the resignation of Education Minister Nitinanda Gonda.
During his visit to Bhubaneswar, Saurav Das was accompanied by CJP Joint Secretary for Organization Balkrishna Shukla and representatives of the local unit. Das stated that he came to meet with NYCS demonstrators, including those on hunger strike. He inspected three government schools in Bhubaneswar and its surroundings, including an SC-ST shelter school in Bhubaneswar, and raised issues regarding sanitary conditions. He also mentioned dilapidated buildings, emphasizing the need to improve learning conditions for children.
NYCS protests against textbook errors continue. Their satyagraha began on August 20, and nearly 33 days have passed as of September 21. Akshaya Kumar, coordinator of Navanirmana Krishak Sanghatan, started an indefinite fast on September 5. Saurav Das joined the demonstration on Monday. Das urged protesters to participate peacefully in blocking the legislative assembly, noting that students are forced to take to the streets because the government is not listening to them. He also pointed out that the government spent 380 million rupees on printing school textbooks despite the numerous errors.
The issue of spending 380 million rupees on book printing has become a major topic for the movement. The opposition party BJD accused the government of a potential scandal involving these funds and demanded an investigation by the CBI. However, Odisha BJP representative Anil Biswal dismissed the CJP's accusations as political, asserting that CJP seeks flaws in BJP-ruled states and criticizing CJP for its silence on student and youth issues in other states.
Following the discovery of errors in the textbooks, the Odisha government has also taken steps. Four officials were suspended, and departmental inquiries were initiated against six others. The state approved 14 recommendations to change the textbook verification process, including a four-stage proofreading system. The creation of a textbook quality control cell was also recommended. The government began distributing corrected textbooks after making amendments. According to officials, revised books for classes 1 through 8 are being issued to students, but the debate over the textbooks persists. CJP and NYCS continue to demand accountability and improvement in the education system, and the appearance of this CJP campaign in Odisha has once again drawn attention to this issue.