Textbooks: Strike deal for commission

RAJAN BHATTARAI

BIRATNAGAR: Most government schools in the eastern region were yet to purchase textbooks as schools failed to make deal to get commissions with the publication houses and entrepreneurs.

Till last year, government had been providing school books to students. This year, however, the government gave the responsibility of publication of texts books of grade one to eight to the private sector.

In the past private publications used to provide commission ranging from 40 to 50 per cent to teachers of government schools. This time private publications have decided to give only 20 per cent of commission to teachers.

One of the guardians Kunti Basnet lamented, “Book stores are replete with school textbooks, but our children have not got books,” adding, “The tradition of commission has ruined our children’s future.” She has two daughters who are studying fifth and seventh grades respectively at local Pokhariya Higher Secondary School.

Some parents allege that school teachers were visiting different publications houses to get more commissions.

Shambhu Pokharel, regional chief, Janak Education Materials Centre said, “We returned the books that we had ordered as we could not compete in giving commissions to teachers with other publication houses.”

Janak Education Materials Centre provides nine per cent commission to schools. Over 45,000 set books of grade ten were sold in Koshi and 50,000 books of grade nine were sold in Mechi zone last year. According to one conservative estimate, book sales were expected to rise by 10 per cent in this year.

Yogendra Prasad Baral, District Education Officer, said, “It has come to my notice that schools have not purchased books over commission issue. Our office will monitor it immediately.”