Textbook publishing in Sindh has stopped due to an ongoing dispute between publishers and the education department, which could be detrimental to students in the state.
According to the Department of Education, printing and shipping textbooks require at least four months. The department stated that as a result, if the academic year starts in April, the kids won’t be able to have textbooks. As a result, the decision was made to start the academic year in August because of the possibility of study materials being unavailable.
Publishers said that the books availability crisis was purposefully caused by the dismissal of Agha Sohail Pathan, the former chairman of the Sindh Textbook Board.
They asserted that Pathan’s prompt promotion would have guaranteed books were available when needed. Publishers were concerned that pupils might not have textbooks by the middle of the school year due to Pathan’s planned termination.
Haris Nawaz, the acting home minister, has entered the picture by meeting with Aziz Khalid, the chairman of the Publishers Association, on Wednesday. In an uncommon move, the minister forced the education department representatives to settle the disagreement with publishers by calling them into his office instead of through the Education Minister.
After learning of this involvement, Education Minister Rana Hussain voiced reservations regarding the Home Minister’s activities.
After being contacted, the Home Minister made it clear that he wanted an expeditious conclusion, highlighting the possible suffering of students in the province if the issue isn’t resolved.During the meeting at the Home Ministry’s office, Publishers Association Chairman Aziz Khalid praised the Home Minister’s role in promoting books. He praised the Home Minister’s excellent efforts and said he had promised the Sindh Government his help.
