Blasphemous textbook: PSAJK forms committee to check all textbooks

Blasphemous textbook: PSAJK forms committee to check all textbooks

Srinagar: While condemning the objectionable contents of a book published by a New Delhi-based publisher, the Private Schools Association of Jammu and Kashmir (PSAJK) on Monday constituted a high-level committee to check all textbooks and asked private schools to refrain from introducing any new book before getting it approved from the expert committee.
The Association also held a meeting with all prominent publishers wherein everyone was advised to check every book before releasing it to the schools.
The proprietor of Paradise Book House, which is also one of the book dealers of the New Delhi-based Jay Cee Publishers, while condemning the publication of the content said that they had not brought or supplied the book. It said that the company had sent some samples to a few schools by itself. Yesterday, Jay Cee Publishers had tendered an unconditional apology over the lapse.
The Association however said that the situation demands much more action than mere apologies.
The Association hailed the government for taking prompt action in this case. They welcomed the lodging of a police case as directed by ADC Srinagar Dr Syed Hanif Balkhi and action taken by Jammu and Kashmir Board of School Education (BOSE) and the Director Education.
“When it comes to books and written material, there should be no room for complacency. Every stakeholder should check every word before introducing and teaching the same to students,” said the President of PSAJK.
The Association constituted a seven-member Academic Committee headed by Khurshid Bismil. The committee will have three members from Kashmir, two from Jammu and one each from Pir Panjal and Chenab valley to check the content and standard of textbooks. The Association said that no school will be allowed to prescribe any new book without approval of the committee.
“The committee has been assigned to check all books and ensure that there is no objectionable matter in any book. Furthermore all schools and publishers have also been asked to check their books. We want to implement a multi-tier checking set-up for every book so that such unfortunate incident does not happen again in future,” the association said.
The Association appealed the BOSE to immediately convene a meeting of its Academic Committee. The meeting should be held both at Srinagar and Jammu at the earliest wherein a threadbare discussion should be held on the issue of books, it said.

 

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