Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed has assured that students will receive new textbooks in January, as preparations for printing have already begun this month to avoid last year’s delays.
Speaking to reporters on Sunday after meetings of the Cabinet Committee on Government Purchases and the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, the adviser said, “Our target is to distribute new books on January 1. Some orders have already been placed. We’ve instructed further scrutiny to ensure quality.”
Last year, printing orders were placed in November, which caused delays. This year, orders are being issued from September to ensure timely delivery. “We’ve already issued some orders and the rest will be completed within September after thorough verification,” he added.
Salehuddin said the government is tightening checks to prevent irregularities in textbook printing. “We’ll examine who received contracts previously, the quality of their work, the paper used, and whether any monopoly exists. Today’s proposal for book purchases has been withdrawn for further scrutiny,” he said.
He also noted that some complaints had been received about suppliers taking multiple contracts without maintaining quality. “We’ve asked to identify those firms,” he added.
On when the final decision on printing companies would be taken, the adviser said, “Within this month. We’re trying to complete the verification within two weeks.”
Bangladesh began the tradition of distributing free textbooks on the first day of the year in 2010. However, due to political changes and the cancellation of the new curriculum by the interim government in August, the authorities had to revert to the 2012 curriculum this year.
Efforts to revise the older books and remove inaccuracies and controversial content delayed printing by four months, leaving many students without textbooks well into the school year.
In Sunday’s meeting, a proposal to buy free textbooks for ninth and tenth graders under the Secondary and Higher Education Division was withdrawn, while the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved the direct purchase of EPI vaccines.
