TNI Bureau: The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Tuesday accused the BJP government in Odisha of undermining the state’s education system, alleging that newly introduced Odia-medium textbooks for Classes I to VIII contain a large number of errors.

Addressing a press conference at Sankha Bhavan, BJD media coordinator and spokesperson Dr. Lenin Mohanty described the mistakes as a “national embarrassment” and alleged that they reflected the government’s negligence towards the Odia language and culture.

According to the opposition party, around 1,678 errors have been identified in textbooks prepared by SCERT under the Odisha Curriculum 2025 in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. The highest number of errors—705—were reportedly found in Class VIII books, including mistakes in language, social science, mathematics and English.

The BJD alleged that the books contain spelling mistakes, factual inaccuracies, geographical errors and incorrect names and photographs of prominent personalities. It cited examples such as the Karnataka Legislative Assembly being depicted as the Odisha Assembly, Niyamgiri Hills being shown in Jharkhand, and Ganjam district being referred to as “Brahmapur district.”

Claiming that such errors could mislead students and damage their understanding of history, geography and culture, the party demanded the immediate withdrawal of the textbooks and a high-level inquiry into the alleged lapses in their preparation and proofreading.

The BJD also sought action against those responsible and said it would continue to raise the issue both inside and outside the Assembly in consultation with teachers, parents and educationists.