The Chief Minister's Office of Odisha announced on Friday, 26 June 2026 that Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has ordered suspensions and disciplinary action against senior education officials following the submission of an inquiry committee report into a school textbook error incident. The committee, formed under the chairmanship of the Development Commissioner of Odisha on the Chief Minister's directive, submitted its findings and CM Majhi acted on its recommendations. The official post from the Chief Minister's Office states: 'ସ୍କୁଲ ବହି ତ୍ରୁଟି ଘଟଣାରେ' — meaning 'in the school textbook error incident' — the committee has submitted its report and the Chief Minister has taken action in line with its recommendations.

What action was taken

Acting on the committee's recommendations, Manoj Padhi, the then Director of the Directorate of Teachers Training and SCERT (State Council of Educational Research and Training), has been suspended. Alongside him, three Assistant Directors — Praliptha Mishra, Dilip Kumar Sahu, and Bharati Tudu — have also been placed under suspension. Separately, disciplinary proceedings have been initiated against six other Assistant Directors of the same directorate, though their names were not specified in the official communication.

Context

The Teachers Training and SCERT directorate is the nodal body in Odisha responsible for teacher training, curriculum development, and the production of school textbooks for government schools across the state. Errors in publicly distributed school textbooks carry significant implications, as they directly affect the quality of education received by students enrolled in the government school system. The inquiry committee chaired by the Development Commissioner — one of the most senior bureaucrats in the state — signals the seriousness with which the Majhi administration treated the matter.

Policy backdrop

Odisha undertook textbook revisions following the adoption of the National Education Policy 2020, updating content and pedagogy across government schools. Such large-scale curriculum overhauls involve multiple layers of editorial, academic, and administrative review, and episodes of content errors during or after such transitions have been observed across several Indian states. The BJP government that came to power in Odisha in 2024 under CM Majhi has placed emphasis on tightening oversight of education department outputs, and this action reflects that administrative posture.

Stakeholders and impact

The suspensions directly affect the careers of four senior officials at SCERT, with disciplinary proceedings involving six more. For millions of students enrolled in Odisha's government schools, the episode raises questions about the robustness of content vetting mechanisms in place before textbooks are printed and distributed. Teachers, who rely on these materials to deliver curriculum, are also stakeholders in ensuring the accuracy of SCERT-produced content.

What's next

Attention will now turn to the remaining recommendations of the Development Commissioner's committee, particularly any directives on strengthening content review processes before future textbook print runs. The School and Mass Education Department of Odisha is expected to announce whether affected textbooks will be reprinted, corrected, or supplemented with errata notices for schools already in possession of the current editions. The speed and scope of those follow-up steps will determine the longer-term credibility of this accountability exercise.