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Never-ending cycle of controversies
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A media article raised the allegation of plagiarism in a science textbook for class VII. Contents of the National Geography Educational website were translated into Bangla using Google Translate and used in the first chapter of the book, without mentioning the source.
Prof Muhammed Zafar Iqbal and Prof Haseena Khan on Tuesday admitted that the allegation was true. Contacted, Prof Zafar, also a renowned writer, said they had issued a statement on this.
“We have determined that the allegation is true after comparing the textbook’s passages with the website’s contents,” reads the statement.
Even though they were not the writers of the parts in question, they were still responsible as the editors, it added.
Contacted, Prof Farhadul Islam, chairman of the NCTB, said, “Whatever the writers did was unethical. These books are experimental versions and we will look into them while preparing the final versions. However, the books need no corrections.”
Mistakes were also found in three textbooks for the ninth and tenth grades.
Four mistakes were found in the book titled History of Bangladesh and World Civilization, three in Bangladesh and Global Studies, and two in Civics and Citizenship.
For example, in the history book, the starting date of the Pakistan army’s genocide against the Bangalees was mentioned as March 26, 1971. But it should be the night of March 25, 1971.
On page 200 of this book, it was written that then Chief Justice Abu Sadat Mohammad Sayem administered the oath of office to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on January 12, 1972.
But the oath was administered by then President Justice Abu Sayeed Chowdhury.
On page 16, the “Rajarbagh Police Lines” was mistakenly written as “Rajarbagh Police Camp” and “Pilkhana EPR Headquarters” as “Pilkhana EPR Camp”.
The NCTB has issued corrections and sent those to all schools.
Speaking at a programme in Chandpur on Tuesday night, Education Minister Dipu Moni said, “If there are errors in textbooks, they will be corrected.”
Referring to social media posts on the errors, the minister said, “Many have raised questions about the textbooks for class IX and X. But these textbooks are not new; they have been there since 2013. These could be inadvertent errors. However, corrections are being sent.”
“If anyone finds errors in these books, let us know, and we’ll correct those,” she added.
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Earlier, in the new textbooks of 2013, there were some serious and embarrassing mistakes. Media reported that more than 200 errors -- misinformation, wrong names of writers and mistakes in sentence making, were found in the Economics book for students of class IX and X.
Besides, some 52 errors were found in Islamic education books and 24 were found in Hindu education books. Some of the mistakes sparked countrywide criticism.
Moreover, almost 100 errors were identified in Chemistry, Mathematics and Higher Mathematics books in that curriculum.
NCTB Member (Curriculum) Prof Moshiuzzaman said they had issued corrections back then.
In 2017, writings of famous authors were scrapped because they were either non-Muslim or the contents were disliked by Islamists, said a former NCTB member, who was involved with the process. He added the exclusions were done on instructions from “higher authorities”.
The excluded contents include Humayun Azad’s poem “Boi”; a philosophical song by Lalon Fakir; Sunil Gangopadhyay’s poem “Shakota Dulchhey”, Rabindranath Tagore’s poem “Bangladesher Hridoy”, and Kazi Nazrul Islam’s essay “Bangaleer Bangla”.
“These contents were well accepted by all,” Prof Serajul Islam said. “These writings didn’t come out of the blue. They were in our tradition. Textbooks are developed based on tradition. There was no need to make the changes,” he said.
“We have seen that such things were done during the Pakistan period. However, it is very unexpected that this is being done in Bangladesh.”
Prof Moshiuzzaman said they do not have any plan to reintroduce these contents right now.
“We made the change as it was required to ensure targeted learning outcomes set in the curriculum. We will be able to bring back the contents only if they are needed to achieve the targeted learning outcome,” he added.
A top official of NCTB said many writers and editors take the work casually as they do not get enough money for this job.
He explained that a panel of five or six people writes a book for class VI to VIII and the total allocation for them is Tk 2.70 lakh per book. While the allocation for an editor or editors’ panel is Tk 70,000 per book.
Asked about the training for writers and editors, Moshiuzzaman said they hold a 5-day orientation and provide them with necessary guidelines.
He said they usually take action against NCTB officials if they are found involved with mistakes. “There is no scope for taking actions against writers and editors. If we find they work causally, we don’t give them the job the next time.”

Indian diamond heiress, 8, enters monkhood and loses fortune
AFP, Ahmedabad
An eight-year-old girl in India who stood to inherit a multi-million-dollar diamond fortune has instead been inducted as a nun to a strict religious order after renouncing worldly pleasures.
Devanshi Sanghvi was, until this week, an heiress to the Sanghvi and Sons jewellery business in the western city of Surat, known locally as “Diamond City” for its prominence in the global gem trade.
Her family are also members of the Jain faith, a small but ancient Indian religion that preaches non-violence, strict vegetarianism and love for all creatures great and small.
This week, she was feted in a four-day ceremony to herald her new vocation, which at one point saw her ride in a carriage pulled by an elephant, according to pictures shared on local media.
Yesterday, she arrived at a temple to trade her elaborate garments for a simple white cotton outfit, after having all her hair removed.
Sanghvi was known among members of Surat’s Jain community for her piousness even as a young child, according to a witness to yesterday’s ceremony, who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity.
“Devanshi has never watched television, movies or gone to malls and restaurants,” they said, adding that the girl had been a regular presence at temple ceremonies.
The child is one of the youngest people to have taken the “diksha” ceremony to abandon their material possessions and enter the Jain monkhood.
Sanghvi’s parents said she had been eager to become a nun, according to local media. Jain families are sometimes said to encourage their children to enter the monkhood to enhance their relatives’ social standing.
Her family’s business, founded in 1981, has a net worth of five billion rupees ($61 million) according to ICRA, an Indian credit rating agency.
Jainism has more than four million followers in India, many -- such as Sanghvi’s family -- from affluent trading communities.
Followers adhere to a strict vegetarian diet and some monks and nuns cover their mouths with fabric to prevent them from accidentally swallowing insects.
The religion has come under criticism for some of its ritual practices, particularly for a tradition of extreme fasts to the death.
A 13-year-old girl in Hyderabad fell into a coma and died in 2016 while undertaking a two-month fast as an act of penance, during which she was only allowed to drink warm water twice a day.
Her parents were charged by police with manslaughter and were subject to public outrage over claims the family had forced her into the fast.