Bhubaneswar: Serious errors have been identified in new textbooks prepared for Classes I to VIII in Odisha government schools, raising concerns among teachers, parents and students. The School and Mass Education Department has acknowledged the mistakes and prepared a list of corrections.

According to reports, as many as 1,678 errors have been detected across the textbooks. These include spelling mistakes, incorrect names of eminent personalities, factual inaccuracies and wrong photographs. The highest number of errors, 705, has been found in Class VIII textbooks.

Several glaring mistakes have come to light. A photograph of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly was used in place of the Odisha Legislative Assembly. Odisha's Niyamgiri Hills were incorrectly described as being located in Jharkhand. The books also identified Ganjam district as Berhampur district, despite Berhampur being a city within Ganjam.

The errors have sparked questions about the textbook preparation process. The books were developed in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and the Odisha Curriculum Framework for School Education 2025. The revised textbooks are scheduled to be introduced for students in the 2026-27 academic session.

The responsibility for preparing the textbooks was entrusted to the Directorate of Teacher Education and the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT). Experienced teachers and education experts were involved in the drafting process. However, the large number of mistakes has led stakeholders to question the quality control and review mechanisms adopted before publication.

Reacting to the issue, Primary School Teachers' Association president Brahmananda Maharana said textbooks play a crucial role in shaping the future of students. He questioned how such a large number of errors could have gone unnoticed despite the involvement of experienced educators.

Maharana called for a thorough review of the textbook preparation process and urged the government to take strict action against those responsible. He also stressed that books containing incorrect information and spelling mistakes should not be distributed to students without proper scrutiny and correction.