Bhubaneswar: The union HRD ministry has received serious criticism for depicting Odisha’s Kalahandi district as an area of poverty and hunger in school book.
The Odisha home minister, Dibya Shankar Mishra, who hails from Kalahandi, has conveyed the union HRD minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nisank the frayed feelings of the people of Odisha in general and Kalahandi district in particular over the depiction of Kalahandi district in the NCERT book for Standard V.
In the telephonic discussion with the union minister, Mishra said that it is unfortunate that the district has been wrongly described as an area of poverty and hunger. He told the minister that Kalahandi is the third largest producer of paddy district in the State. The farmers are selling Rs 1000 crore worth paddy per year. The district is a pioneer district in the State in cotton production.
Stating that the wrongful entry in the NCERT book for Standard V is an irresponsible act, the Odisha minister has asked the union minister to take immediate steps to withdraw the book from the market immediately. He has also demanded action against those responsible for this wrongful entry in the book.
Minister Mishra also talked with the NCERT director Hrusikesh Senapati and pointed out the wrongful entry in the book.
