The commencement of the new academic session is imminent, and textbooks have been delivered to schools under the jurisdiction of the district's local bodies. Community schools in this area, encountering textbook shortages annually, have successfully obtained textbooks one month prior to the start of this year's academic session.
The official bookseller of the Janak Education Materials Center has procured textbooks for the community schools of Budhiganga, Triveni, and Badimalika municipalities, as well as for Khaptad Chhedadaha and Gaumul Rural Municipalities.
Furthermore, the distribution of textbooks has commenced in the community schools of four municipalities in the eastern and northern regions. The responsibility for distribution in Budhinanda Municipality, Himali, Swamikartik, and Jagannath Rural Municipalities has been assumed by Rara Karnali Bookstore.
Acknowledging the persistent challenges in teaching and learning arising from the annual textbook shortages, Principal Dayaram Joshi of Pashupati Secondary School confirmed that the schools have received textbooks one month in advance this year.
Joshi elaborated that students can later apply for any missing textbooks, following the established procedure. He emphasized the possibility of conducting the academic session smoothly despite the presence of textbooks.
Despite previous years' textbook shortages, schools have received books on Chaitra 15 for the upcoming academic session 2081 BS, as per Joshi's statement.
The Janak Education Materials Center, headquartered in Dhangadhi, initiated distribution from Bajura of Sudurpaschim Province on Chaitra 13. The office's Chief, Ram Bahadur Kunwar, disclosed that a total of 1,010,037 books have been distributed in the district. Additionally, Kunwar mentioned that out of eight booksellers in Bajura, seven have completed book sales, with one currently in progress.
Kunwar indicated that there are an estimated 127,806 textbooks for the year 2081 in Bajura, with 86 percent of the books already delivered to the district, and the remainder expected to arrive shortly.
Nrip Khati, the manager of Karuna Books and Delta Stores, noted that textbooks were first delivered to Bajura's schools in March. He stated, "Books have reached 95 percent of the schools in our distribution area. We will deliver them to the remaining schools in a few days."
The center has prioritized book sale and distribution to the remote and challenging villages of the province. Following Bajura, distribution has occurred in Darchula and Bajhang as well, according to Kunwar. He mentioned that 91,486 books have been dispatched to Darchula and 26,051 books to Bajhang. Janak Shiksha Material Centre has assured that books will be sent to all districts within the month of Chaitra.
For the upcoming academic session 2081, an estimated 1,915,185 books will be required in the Far West. Public education will cover 16 percent of the transportation cost to Bajura. Education Material Center Dhangadhi has projected that more than 1,901,585 books will be sold within the month of March. The center had sold 174,178 books in the current academic session, 2080.
Most local bodies in Sudurpaschim Province lack a budget for purchasing textbooks. Kunwar revealed that local bodies have struggled to allocate and disburse budgets for textbook procurement. Out of 88 local bodies, the majority have not managed their budget allocation and disbursement. Kunwar expressed concern that this might lead to problems and delays in distributing the remaining books to schools. He stressed that local bodies are responsible for providing funds to schools, and schools are expected to remunerate the traders. Traders purchase books from the center and distribute them to schools, while local bodies are expected to allocate budgets in a timely manner for distribution.
