Bonna Mondol from Jashore:
Despite having schools closed and being idle at home for over ten months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, school children in Bangladesh have got new books thanks to the government’s exemplary and wise decision.
Anyone who studied in Bangladesh would smell the new books while remembering the joy of getting new books at hand and covering them with hard papers with yarn and needles.
The government, run by Awami League has made exemplary progress in ensuring education for all in the far rural areas including the cities of the country.
On January 1, 2021, the very first day of the year, was the most joyous day for the students of Bangladesh during the pandemic since they were ensured to get new books for new classes by rotation within few days.
The textbook distribution activities were started among the students from class sixth to nine on that day.
Seventh-grader Athoi Mondol of Shimulia village in Jhikorgachha of Jashore district said “I’m very happy with new books.”
“I’m covering my new books with brown papers and calender of the previous year,” said Athoi adding that “I enjoy very much doing this every year.”
Athoi’s mother Monira Mondol said “Children are very happy with new books.”
Thanking the present government, she said the children have found new hope of continuing their studies despite all the negative news of the new coronavirus.
Earlier on December 31, 2020, Bangladeshs’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the free textbook distribution through a videoconferencing from her official residence Ganabhaban.
The new book distribution event was held at Bangabandhu International Conference Center (BICC) in the city.
According to the government sources, new textbooks among 4.5 crore students of the primary and secondary levels were distributed for free of cost on the first day of the New Year.
However, like the previous years, the textbook is not being distributed by holding book festivals like every year due to the coronavirus.
The new books are being handed over among the students at their respective educational institutions in 12 days to avoid any kind of gathering.
Chairman of the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) Professor Narayan Chandra Saha said on the occasion of the ‘Mujib Year’, novelty has been brought on the cover of the new books this time.
Still images of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, independence, great Liberation War, Language Movement and various development projects of the present government have been printed with captions on the back page of the textbooks, he added.
The NCTB chairman said cent percent of primary books have already been printed while more than 85 percent of secondary books have been printed so far.
The books have already been reached to the schools across the country, he said.
Since 2010, the government of the ruling party Awami League has been celebrating ‘book festival’ on January 1 every year in a festive atmosphere mood which has significantly reduced the dropout rates and boosted education standard across the country.
