Balbharati Completes 60 Years Of Educational Contribution, Felicitated At Pune Festival

Pune: The Maharashtra State Bureau of Textbook Production and Curriculum Research, popularly known as Balbharati, has completed 60 years of contribution to the state’s educational and cultural development. To mark the milestone, the Pune Festival felicitated Balbharati Director Anuradha Oak with a memento, shawl and coconut on Thursday.

Balbharati was established on January 27, 1967, following the Kothari Commission’s recommendation for independent textbook production institutions in every state. Over the past six decades, the institution has played a key role in providing school textbooks to millions of students across Maharashtra.

The institution produces and distributes more than 10 crore textbooks annually in 10 languages, including Marathi, English, Hindi, Urdu, Kannada, Telugu, Sindhi and Gujarati. This year, Balbharati also undertook the publication of textbooks for four classes in a single year.

Speaking at the festival, Oak said, "Today, children’s screen time is increasing and their interest in reading is declining. There is a need to bring children back to a reading culture. Although the Kishor magazine is running at a loss, it is being made available to children at a minimum price to develop their interest in reading. Kishor and Balbharati have now become one. Along with textbook production, Balbharati is also working to promote reading culture."

As part of its Diamond Jubilee celebrations, Balbharati has distributed sets of six books to students in 66,000 schools across Maharashtra. The institution is also focusing on modern methods for the promotion and distribution of its publications.