New Delhi: In a major embarrassment for Odisha’s education system, newly introduced school textbooks for Classes 1 to 8 have been found riddled with a staggering 1,678 errors. These range from factual inaccuracies and geographical mix-ups to conceptual scientific mistakes and outright bizarre descriptions.
This major scandal comes just as schools reopened for the 2026-27 academic session, raising concerns about the long-term impact on students’ learning. With over 1,600 documented issues, the episode underscores the urgent need for robust review mechanisms in educational publishing.
Who Brought It to Light?
The errors surfaced almost immediately after the distribution of the new Odia-medium textbooks to government schools. Teachers’ associations played a pivotal role in exposing the scale of the problem. Brahmananda Maharana, president of the Primary Teachers Association, publicly highlighted the 1,678 errors after a thorough review by educators.
Parents’ groups, including the Odisha Parents’ Federation, also voiced strong protests, terming the lapses a “crime against children’s future.” Teachers flagged issues related to content accuracy, wrong photographs, misleading captions, and conceptual mistakes right at the start of the session. The School and Mass Education Department acknowledged the complaints and prepared a corrigendum (list of corrections) for immediate classroom use.
The textbooks, developed by the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) under the Directorate of Teacher Education, were intended as an “experimental edition” for the new curriculum.
These are the Most Shocking Mistakes in Odisha Textbooks
- While there are 1,678 errors in total across 55 books, certain glaring blunders have gone viral and drawn the most attention. Here’s a detailed look at some of the most embarrassing and educationally damaging mistakes:
- Isaac Newton Described as the “Greatest Pilot”: One of the most ridiculed errors appears in a Class 8 Science book, where the legendary physicist and mathematician Sir Isaac Newton is wrongly called the “greatest pilot.”
- Karnataka Legislative Assembly Photo Used for Odisha: A photograph of the Vidhan Soudha (Karnataka Legislative Assembly) in Bengaluru was incorrectly labelled as the Odisha Legislative Assembly.
- Hampi Temple Misidentified as Konark Sun Temple: The iconic Hampi temple complex (Vijaya Vittala Temple) in Karnataka was wrongly presented as Odisha’s world-famous Konark Sun Temple.
- Niyamgiri Hills Placed in Wrong State: Odisha’s culturally significant Niyamgiri Hills — home to the Dongria Kondh (or Dongaria Kondh) tribal community, a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group — were erroneously located in Jharkhand.
- Berhampur Wrongly Called a District: Berhampur, a prominent city in Ganjam district, was mistakenly referred to as a separate district.
Scientific and Conceptual Errors:
o Temperature incorrectly labelled as pressure.
o Food web confused with food cycle.
o “Equinox” replaced with “Equator.”
o Wheat mixed up with paddy in agriculture references.
o Spelling mistakes like “Gretest” instead of “Greatest.”
Error Breakdown by Subject/Class:
• Class 8 textbooks alone contain 705 errors.
• Jijnasa: 294 errors.
• Sanskrit: 114 errors.
• Other subjects like Social Science, Literature, English, and Mathematics also affected.
Action taken by Government
Following a high-level review meeting at Lok Seva Bhawan with School and Mass Education Minister Nityananda Gond, Chief Secretary Anu Garg, and other officials, the CM directed a thorough investigation.
Key decisions taken so far:
• A three-member high-level committee headed by the Development Commissioner (Deo Ranjan Kumar Singh) has been formed to probe the lapses.
• The committee must submit its report within seven days, identifying responsible officials or agencies.
• Strict action will be taken against those found guilty.
• The government is reviewing the entire textbook preparation and quality control process to prevent future occurrences.
• Immediate corrigenda have been issued to schools, with teachers instructed to use corrected content verbally for the current academic year. Revised books are expected in the 2027-28 session.
Opposition parties like BJD and Congress have criticized the BJP-led government, calling it a failure of governance and an insult to Odia pride.
Broader Impact
This textbook fiasco has reignited debates on the implementation of NEP 2020 at the state level. Millions of students in Odisha rely on these materials, and persistent errors can erode trust in the public education system.
Education experts emphasize the need for multi-tiered review involving subject matter experts, linguists, and fact-checkers before printing. Parents and teachers are demanding not just corrections but full reprinting where feasible to avoid long-term harm.
