Govt dissolves textbook revision committee
The move comes amid call for inclusion of Islamic scholars in the committee
The Ministry of Education today dissolved the 10-member coordination committee formed to revise and amend all textbooks.
On 15 September, the government formed the committee for the revision and amendment of all textbooks prepared and published by the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB).
KM Kabirul Islam, additional secretary of the Ministry of Education, was appointed as the convener, with Secondary and Higher Education Division Senior Assistant Secretary Yanur Rahman serving as the member secretary.
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The other members of the committee included education researcher Rakhal Raha, Prof Kamrul Hasan Mamun from the Department of Physics at Dhaka University, Prof Mohammad Azam from the Bangla Department, Associate Prof Samina Luthfa Nitra from the Department of Sociology, Additional Secretary Masud Akhtar Khan from the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education, NCTB Chairman Prof AKM Riazul Hasan, NCTB Curriculum Committee Member Prof Rabiul Kabir Chowdhury, and NCTB Primary Curriculum Member Prof AFM Sarwar Jahan.
On 22 September, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar called upon the government to include at least two alems (Islami scholars) in the committee. Mufti Syed Muhammad Rezaul Karim, amir of the Islamic Andolan Bangladesh (IAB), also made the same demand.
A similar demand was also raised by a teachers' organisation named National Teachers' Forum.
Contacted by TBS today, Anu Muhammad, a former economics professor at Jahangirnagar University, said, "The cancellation of the textbook revision committee does not send a good message. Any decisions should be made thoughtfully. Many people are now raising complaints against the committee, opposing it in the name of religion. If the committee is dissolved because of this, it will reflect the government's weakness."
