The National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) has failed to meet its commitment twice, leaving around 30 million textbooks unprinted. Even among the printed books, another 30 million are awaiting binding, quality checks, and approval.
Many students have received only partial textbooks, and with the academic year already in its third month, students and parents are struggling. To make matters worse, schools went on a 40-day holiday from February 28, covering Ramadan, Eid-ul-Fitr, and other vacations, without ensuring students received all their books.
Initially, the NCTB promised to supply all textbooks by January. Later, top officials from the Ministry of Education and various government levels assured that students would receive all books by February.
However, that promise also remains unfulfilled. Reality suggests that it will not be possible to distribute all textbooks before Eid. The longer the delay, the more it hampers students' education.
Given that it is taking over three months to distribute textbooks, education experts have suggested modifying the academic calendar and implementing a special syllabus.
Following political changes, the curriculum was revised, and textbooks are now being printed based on the old syllabus. Delays have been worsened by issues such as tender processes, approvals, contracts, and most critically, a paper shortage.
Paper Crisis and Rising Costs
Printing all textbooks requires approximately 100,000 tons of paper. Since December, domestic paper mill owners have raised prices by 30,000 BDT per ton without any clear reason, forcing printers to import paper from China.
However, these imports are taking time, leading to further delays. Local printers are reluctant to buy from domestic suppliers due to potential losses.
According to NCTB sources, over 390 million books are being printed for around 40 million students in primary and secondary levels. In the secondary level (including madrasa education), the total number of textbooks required is approximately 304 million.
As of March 3, about 279.09 million secondary-level books had been printed, but only 241.77 million had been approved for distribution at the upazila level. This means 62.28 million textbooks are yet to be distributed.
For primary education, the total required books amount to 91.95 million, of which 90.34 million have been approved for supply, leaving 1.6 million books still undelivered.
Paper Mill Owners Profiting, Printers Struggling
Despite the crisis, paper mill owners who allegedly embezzled 30 billion BDT remain beyond accountability. Of the 116 printing companies awarded contracts by the NCTB, only 33 managed to deliver books on time.
Print Master Printing & Packaging Ltd., led by Md. Shahidul Islam, was the first to complete its deliveries, despite purchasing paper at high prices. However, many smaller printing houses are facing severe financial difficulties due to the skyrocketing paper costs.
Special Syllabus Suggested to Recover Learning Losses
Two professors from the Institute of Education and Research at Dhaka University told Ittefaq that, given the unusual circumstances, the academic calendar should be adjusted, and a special syllabus should be implemented to ensure that essential subjects are not omitted from students' learning.
Teachers and Parents in Distress
Several teachers from two schools in Dhaka expressed concerns over the chaotic academic situation, stating that teaching is extremely difficult without textbooks.
Meanwhile, the Parents’ Unity Forum had urged the government to keep schools open until the 15th–20th of Ramadan to compensate for lost study time. However, the Ministry of Education did not consider this request.
No Concern from Authorities on Student Learning During Holidays
The Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education (Maushi) showed little interest in addressing how students would continue their studies during the holidays without books.
An official, speaking anonymously, stated that a proposal for special study guidelines during the break had been discussed, but it was dropped due to ongoing disputes over the Director General position at Maushi.
Moreover, the Ministry of Education believes keeping schools open without books would be pointless.