Bhubaneswar, 14 July (H.S.): The Odisha Crime Branch on Tuesday arrested former State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) Director Manoj Padhi in connection with the alleged irregularities in the preparation, approval and publication of school textbooks for Classes I to VIII.

Padhi was taken into custody after being detained and questioned by the investigating agency. Following the examination of evidence, the Crime Branch formally arrested him as part of its ongoing probe.

The investigation began on Monday after the Crime Branch registered a criminal case into the alleged irregularities related to the preparation, approval and publication of school textbooks used across the state.

The case has been registered under Sections 316(5), 201, 3(5) and 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) based on a complaint lodged by the current SCERT Director, Madhusmita Sahu. The investigation is being led by DSP Narendra Kumar Behera as the Investigating Officer (IO) under the supervision of the Crime Branch Superintendent of Police.

The case follows the findings of a state government inquiry that uncovered 1,678 factual, typographical and printing errors in textbooks for Classes I to VIII across multiple subjects. In response to the widespread discrepancies, the Odisha government had constituted a three-member committee headed by Development Commissioner D.K. Singh to examine the issue.

Based on the committee's findings, the government had earlier suspended former SCERT Director Manoj Padhi along with three Assistant Directors of SCERT for their alleged role in the textbook preparation process.

The Crime Branch is continuing its investigation to determine the responsibility of officials and others involved in the drafting, scrutiny, approval and printing of the textbooks. Further action is expected based on the findings of the ongoing probe.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Monalisa Panda