Textbooks in black market: Exposing anarchy in education system

In this country of endless possibilities, only the bad things seem to happen effortlessly. It is often said that if you pay enough, you can even get tiger’s milk in this country. Needless to say, this saying is mostly used in a negative sense. But who would have thought that even textbooks would fall victim to the black market? Up until last year, students in Bangladesh were accustomed to receiving free textbooks on the first day of the academic year. But this time, things are different. Due to political changes, there have been delays in printing the textbooks, leaving uncertainty over when students will actually receive them.

January is set to end, and now February is here, with no certainty about when students will get all their textbooks. However, they are available in the black market. In a twisted turn of events, students are being forced to buy their supposedly "free" textbooks at exorbitant prices. News reports from Wednesday, January 29, revealed that the free textbooks for the current academic year are being sold openly. A full set of books for grades six to eight is being sold for 5,000 taka, while the set for grade nine (with one or two books missing, depending on the group) is priced at 6,000 to 6,500 taka. Information has emerged about the sale of these free textbooks in places like Nilkhet and Bangla Bazaar in the capital, as well as in other parts of the country.

The National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) has stated that there is no opportunity for the sale or purchase of free textbooks. Operations are underway with the help of law enforcement agencies to arrest those involved in the black market. Even if these operations are carried out and offenders are caught, what about the students? Will they not study? Will they not attend classes? No one has a clear answer to this. The Ministry of Education only provides assurances, but there is no certainty about when those promises will be fulfilled.

Such disorder and chaos surrounding textbooks have never been seen in the country’s recent history. How much negligence and lack of awareness must a government display in the field of education for this to happen? The government of this country has even included something as sacred as textbooks in the black market! There's no point in blaming the vendors selling these books. They admit that, while selling textbooks on the black market is risky, the profits are high. Some black market sellers are even taking these books to large cities like Chattogram, Rajshahi, and Khulna. In areas of the capital like Motijheel, Mohammadpur, Farmgate, Malibagh, and near the railway gates of Nakhalpara, textbooks are freely sold in shops.

Students are benefiting from this, but who will compensate for the money lost? For a low-income or middle-class family, spending five to seven thousand taka on textbooks is not a small amount. But if they do not buy the books, their children will fall behind. On the other hand, those who have the money to buy the books will gain an advantage. When classes start, it will be evident that some students are ahead of the majority. This will create a significant inequality. This is not a minor disorder; it reveals the severe dysfunction within society. The solution needs to be swift, and the sooner all free textbooks are delivered to students, the better. There is no alternative.