Tk 948 crore to be spent on printing free textbooks for 2027

The government has approved four procurement proposals worth approximately Tk 948 crore for printing, binding and supplying around 18.5 crore copies of textbooks to be distributed free of cost among primary, ebtedayee, secondary, dakhil and technical students for the 2027 academic year.

The approval was given at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Government Purchase held at the Secretariat on Thursday, August 6, chaired by Finance Minister Amir Khosru Mahmud Chowdhury. According to sources, preparations for the printing process are already underway to ensure that textbooks reach students before the start of the new academic year.

According to the approved proposals, over Tk 404 crore will be spent on printing and supplying textbooks for the primary level (classes I to V). More than 7.35 crore books will be printed for this level, with 63 printing firms awarded the work. Of the total 110 lots, 106 have been approved.

Over Tk 154 crore has been allocated for printing more than 3.18 crore textbooks for ebtedayee level students, to be carried out by 35 establishments. For printing Bangla and English version books for class VI, as well as dakhil and technical education books, around Tk 184 crore will be spent. More than 4.11 crore books will be published under this category.

Additionally, approval has been given for spending over Tk 206 crore for printing and supplying nearly 3.84 lakh textbooks for secondary, dakhil and technical stream students of class VII. The work has been awarded to 59 establishments.

Officials said this government initiative will help achieve the target of placing new books in students' hands at the start of the 2027 academic year. Emphasis is being placed on completing the printing and supply activities within the scheduled time to ensure the smooth continuation of the free textbook programme.