The Jammu & Kashmir Board of School Education (JKBOSE) has asked all schools up to Class 12 to follow textbooks prescribed by the Board in Union Territory. The order has drawn criticism from political parties and publishers in the U.T.
In its latest order issued this month, the Board warned of a disciplinary action and imposition of a penalty up to ₹50,000 or both against those schools recommending books besides the one prescribed by the Board.
“No school shall force any parent or students to purchase books or material other than those published and prescribed by JKBOSE,” the order read.
It advised the parents to report to the authorities in case any school forces them to purchase books other than those published by the Board.
The latest order comes in the wake of the judgement by the J&K High Court last year that upheld that the Board was vested “with statutory power to prescribe text books, which include publication of these books”.
“Neither the private schools nor other publishers have any right to compel the Board to prescribe text books published by these private publishers,” the High Court observed.
The J&K Private Schools United Front, which had opposed the Board’s move, claimed that the Board “cannot not make it mandatory for the schools”.
The move has drawn criticism from several quarters. Parents argue that it will end inclusion of add-on advanced books related to the syllabus, or the books on local faith and local history.
Khursheed Jan, the Kashmir Booksellers and Stationers Association (KBSA), said the move has inflicted losses on publishers in Kashmir. “The order should have been made public earlier so that printing of stocks would have been stopped. We have taken loans from banks and face bankruptcy if the books are not included by the private schools. The J&K government should investigate this matter and reconsider the directive,” Mr. Jan, while seeking a grace period of three years, said.
Assault on right to free education: PDP
A spokesman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said the Board’s decision to enforce only board books in J&K schools, limiting access to materials from reputed publishers, raises concerns. “This move seems to control ideas, imposing a restricted curriculum—an assault on the right to free education. No such order is applicable across India,” the spokesperson said.
The Lieutenant-Governor’s administration has been holding consultations to draft textbooks for J&K last year under the National Education Policy (NEP). Several academics, including Professor Shyam Narayan Lal of Jammu University, Professor Ajay Kumar Ghosh of Barkatullah University and Professor Keshav Mishra of Banaras Hindu University, have shared their inputs for framing the textbooks.
Meanwhile, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti has also questioned the government’s move to make the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University as the institution to process the filling of the post of Vice Chancellor for another independent varsity, Baba Gulam Shah Badshah University.
“The appointment process of the vice chancellor for the Baba Gulam Shah Badshah University, set up under a distinct Act, raises questions as their V-C nomination papers are submitted to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University. This is a concerning instance of undermining the autonomy of the institution,” Ms. Mufti said.
J&K to get Madrassa Board
In a separate move, the Director of School Education Kashmir (DSEK) has constituted a four-member draft committee for the establishment of first ever madrassa board in Jammu and Kashmir.
“Sanction is accorded to the establishment of Draft Committee comprising four officials who will prepare a comprehensive draft proposal regarding establishment of Madrassa Board in J&K,” an official order read.
