Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Education Minister V Sivankutty has raised serious concerns over the continued shortage of textbooks in Kendriya Vidyalayas, calling for immediate intervention by the central government.

In a social media post on Sunday, the minister said students of Classes 5 and 8 in Kendriya Vidyalayas are yet to receive their textbooks, even four months after the academic year began on 1 April.

“Urgent intervention is needed in the non-provision of textbooks to students in Kendriya Vidyalayas even after four months of the commencement of classes,” he wrote on Facebook. “Students of Classes 5 and 8 are currently in crisis without books. The negligence on the part of NCERT authorities, with just days left for the first-quarter exams, is extremely serious.”

 

 

Sivankutty noted that while teachers have been provided with study materials online, the absence of physical textbooks would severely affect students' ability to prepare for exams.

He also contrasted the situation with that in state-run schools in Kerala, where textbooks were distributed before the academic year began. “In this situation, the negligence on the part of NCERT is unacceptable,” he said.

The minister further criticised the move to make textbooks available only through online platforms and private bookstalls, arguing that it would force parents and students to pay more than the fixed retail price. “Keeping the future of students in mind, the central government must intervene immediately to ensure textbooks are made available in schools,” he said.