DHAKA : The government has chalked out a comprehensive roadmap to place fully revised and error-free textbooks in the hands of all students on the first day of the 2027 academic year, breaking the previous longstanding practice of partial distribution at the start of the year with remaining books trickling in as late as March or April.
 
The National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) has finalised plans to print approximately 310 million textbooks, covering pre-primary through secondary levels and deliver them to the upazila level by 30 November.
 
NCTB Chairman Md. Mahbubul Haq Patwari (in additional charge) confirmed the plans to BSS and said all books across every class would reach field-level distribution points by 30 November.
 
"On 1 January, every student across the country will receive 100 percent of their new, quality textbooks on the first day of the academic year," he said.

 Scale and Cost

The total print run for 2027 stands at 307,198,101 copies across pre-primary, primary, Ebtedayee, Secondary, Dakhil, Vocational and Technical levels at an estimated cost of Tk 1,643 crore 24 lakh 70 thousand 514.
 
At the primary level, including pre-primary and ethnic minority students, a total of 85,155,178 copies will be printed across 143 lots at an estimated cost of Tk 459 crore 85 lakhs.
 
For secondary and technical levels (Classes I-IX), 221,042,923 copies will be printed across 441 lots at an estimated cost of Tk 1,183 crore 39 lakhs.
 
Procurement Timeline

Following PPR-2025 guidelines, NCTB has set a 206- 220-day tender schedule.

Tender invitations began on 3 June; submission and opening is set for 28 June; evaluation by 28 July; approval by 27 August; work orders by 30 August; and contracts with printers by 20 September. Printing and binding must be completed and books delivered to the field by 29 November.
 
"Our firm target is 30 November for field delivery. Even in the most delayed cases, 15 December is the outer limit, but we guarantee every student will have their books by 1 January," the NCTB Chairman said.
     
Curriculum Revision

A total of 601 textbooks across all levels, including English versions, are being revised, with around 320 subject-based specialists working on 97 secondary and 36 primary titles. All revision work is expected to be completed by July, ahead of final printing.
 
The Chairman noted that inaccuracies in previous editions are being corrected through an independent expert committee.
 
From the 2027 academic year, three new books will be introduced in Classes IV and VI. A new sports textbook for Class IV will cover seven disciplines, including football, cricket, chess, badminton, swimming, athletics and karate, with initial content developed between 19-23 April.
 
For Class VI, a Learning with Happiness book and a motivational textbook on technical and vocational education (TVET) will be introduced around vocational careers and inspire students through real-world success stories.
 
Secondary and Higher Education Division Secretary Abdul Khalek said NCTB has been given strict instructions to ensure the entire exercise of printing and distributing approximately 310 million books proceeds without complications.