Free Books Elude Students As Enrolment Rises In Prayagraj Schools

More than four months into the new academic session, hundreds of students in Classes 1 to 8 at several schools in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj district are still waiting for free textbooks and workbooks. School staff are making repeated trips to the basic shiksha adhikari’s office to seek additional supplies.

The shortage has been reported in several government-aided schools where enrolment has increased this session, but books were supplied based on student strength recorded on the U-DISE portal during the previous academic year. As a result, newly admitted students have been left without textbooks.

“Orders for books for free distribution are placed based on the student strength registered on the designated portal as on September 30. If enrolment is higher in any school, arrangements will be made to provide books to the additional students,” said Anil Kumar, BSA, Prayagraj.

At Vidyawati Darbari Girls’ Inter College in Lukerganj, school staff have submitted demand letters and deputed employees to the education department office to seek books for newly admitted students in Classes 2, 4, 6, 7 and 8. At least 22 girls in Classes 6 to 8 have not received their free textbooks.

Similar complaints have been reported from Hamidia Girls Inter College, DP Girls School and Annie Besant Inter College, where several students are yet to receive books. Students at the government-run upper primary school in South Malaka and some other schools have also not received complete sets of textbooks, teachers said.

School staff said that earlier, books under the free distribution scheme were ordered based on estimated enrolment. In recent years, however, the number of books printed and supplied has been linked to student strength recorded on the U-DISE portal from the previous academic session.

This system can result in shortages when enrolment rises in a new session. Since textbooks supplied under the free distribution scheme are not available for retail sale, students who do not receive them through their schools cannot easily purchase them from the market either, a teacher at one of the affected schools said.