School body demands reform in textbook distribution

The Associated Managements of English Medium Schools in Karnataka (KAMS) has demanded the Education department not to insist on sending indents for textbooks for the 2018-19 academic year.

Member-schools say that they face problems when it comes to distributing the books. “The Education Department issued a circular saying that schools should not indulge in commercial activities. So now, we can only supply government-issued textbooks to parents at the school. We can’t give notebooks, graph books, activity books or dictionaries like we used to. This has caused inconvenience to parents,” said general secretary Shashi Kumar.

The association has sought the department to allow them to have tuck shops on the campus where parents can purchase books of their choice. He further said that books are not supplied to them on time by the Education Department.

They have to make several trips to the office of the Block Education Officer (BEO) to get their complete order. “The department should make the books available directly in the market so that parents can buy from stores directly, easing the burden on us,” Kumar added. They have requested the department to hold a meeting with them to iron out issues with textbook distribution.

Baragur’s demand
Writer Baragur Ramachandrappa has urged Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to direct the Primary and Higher Education Department not to introduce the NCERT syllabus for Class VI Science and Mathematics subjects.

The Principal Secretary, Primary and Higher Education Department, had directed Karnataka Textbook Society to introduce NCERT syllabus for Science and Mathematics subjects of Class VI and for 74 Adarsh Schools across the state.