Gross irregularities have come to fore in the book fairs being held at the district headquarters for establishing libraries in all the primary and middle schools throughout the State.
Under Sarv Shiksha Abhiyan, the Rajya Shiksha Kendra (RSK) has been shouldered with responsibility of establishing libraries in 70,941 primary and 26,884 middle schools with a cost of Rs 38.38 crore. As per the directives of the RSK, selected 400 publishers have the responsibility to participate in the book fairs in five routes (a group of 10 districts). This way, in a fair, around 60 publishers are taking part.
However, sources claimed that instead of selling the books separately to different schools, a group of publishers teamed up and minting money. This was evident with the bills the schools received after having purchased books. There are bills in which the school, instead of issuing cheques to each publisher, a cheque of consolidated amount was issued to a group of publishers. A school teacher visited the book fair in Betul district told that the publishers are influencing the schools by providing attractive commissions, to buy books only from select publishers. In the beginning, the RSK made all out efforts to maintain transparency, but the publishers got the way out by influencing the local schools at district levels.
Regarding the irregularities this time, the bills received against the purchase of the books, do not possess any bill number and even they do not have Tax Information Network (TIN) number. Though, the RSK in its instructions did not mention that TIN number is required by the publishers, factually every businessman selling something. learning a lesson from the irregularities committed in the year 2007, the RSK had this time had taken several steps to streamline the process, but nothing concrete could come out.
last time, the transactions were through local bookstores and in cash, but to check the illegal practice and monopoly of few publishers only, it was instructed that one publisher can display his books only in one route. Despite having contacted Commissioner and Director of RSK Rashmi Arun Shami several times to know as what action she has taken against the irregularities found in the whole process of establishing libraries in the schools, she did not respond.