Additional demand from private schools caused delay in textbook supply: Karnataka

Fifty per cent of textbooks meant for private schools that had not paid the advance were printed, and those schools that paid the fixed amount all received the textbooks, according to the society.

However, the society said, an opportunity was given to some private schools that completed the payment but had not placed indents for the textbook on the Students Achievement Tracking System.

As a result, out of the 17,710 private schools, 1,826 placed an additional demand of 5.4 lakh textbooks and paid for them. The additional textbooks were therefore ordered to be printed, causing the delay, according to the society, which also said 60 per cent of textbooks meant for private schools were already supplied and that the rest would be supplied in a week.

The society had earlier attributed the delay to the supply chain of paper being hit because of the Ukraine war, leading to an increase in the paper price.

The controversy erupted after textbook revision committee head Rohith Chakrathirtha, a right-wing ideologue, was accused of “saffronising” textbook content and distorting history.