Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan announced that these books will be made available across nearly 20,000 pin codes nationwide
| Photo Credit: PTI
The National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has tied up with Amazon Seller Services Pvt. Ltd., in a first of a collaboration, to ensure access to original NCERT textbooks at the printed price.
Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan announced that these books will be made available across nearly 20,000 pin codes nationwide. “NCERT will triple-fold publication of books and publish 15 crore books during the academic year 2025-26,” he added.
Mr. Pradhan urged for development of e-books that are interactive and AI-driven, featuring innovations such as talking books, to make learning joyful for 300 million students.
School Education Secretary Sanjay Kumar emphasised the need to strengthen the supply chain for textbooks, which account for nearly 96% of the total volume of book sales in the country, and make them be available on e-commerce platforms such as Amazon to enhance accessibility for students.
Through Amazon’s vast delivery network, students and schools, even in remote areas, will be able to purchase textbooks at the prescribed prices, the Ministry said in an official statement. “This would address the challenges of supply gaps, delayed availability, and regional shortages of textbooks, ensuring equitable access to education,” the statement added.
Only original NCERT textbooks will be retailed on this platform, thereby helping curb the sale of pirated NCERT textbooks. Amazon will help NCERT monitor and take down unauthorized sellers who distribute counterfeit or overpriced books.
The Ministry said that this tie-up shall also enable NCERT to leverage customer reviews and feedback to improve the quality of its textbooks and other educational material. “Moreover, anonymised sales and usage data will be shared with NCERT to facilitate informed decision-making regarding future print orders, distribution strategies, and selection of new distributors in states/districts where the demand for NCERT textbooks is more,” the statement said.
Published – October 07, 2024 09:44 pm IST