IMPHAL April 12: The MSF alleged that the scarcity of textbooks faced in the state is predetermined and intentional carried out by the Board of Secondary Education in collusion with the All Manipur Government Recognized Private Schools Welfare Association for monetory benefits.
MSF general secretary Anna Shah stated while talking to reporters during the sidelines of a drive conducted at Uripok Khaidem Leikai today evening that the student body received information that a building at the locality has been used for hoarding text books published by MacMilan, New Delhi.
As the MSF volunteers were trying to enter the storage room, some persons suspected to be AMGPSWA members tipped off the police and sudden arrival of police personnel at the place prevented the students from entering and completing to carry on with the drive.
Further, some persons responsible for the godawn were picked up by the police, he said.
He further stated that the books which are supposedly stored at the storage room could be worth around one crore rupees before demanding that the said books should be handed over to the MSF at the soonest by the owner.
Even as the students are pressing the education department to include 30% content of state history, geography, culture and sports in the state board curriculum, but on the contrary, 38 government recognized private schools are found teaching the McMillan books at present.
The issue should be addressed by all the student unions and the state government and demanded the affiliation of the 38 schools should be cancelled at the soonest, he added.
Further, if the state government fail to meet the demands of the MSF and to keep their word that BOSEM text books will be available by April 18, the student body will launch intense forms of agitation with other like minded organizations from the next day onwards, he said.
