‘Isaac Newton Was a Great Pilot’: From Science Gaffes to Geography Errors, Odisha Textbooks Under Scrutiny

More than 1,600 grammatical, factual and contextual errors have been detected in newly introduced Odia-medium textbooks for Classes I to VIII in Odisha government schools, raising concerns over the quality of books prepared under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 for the 2026-27 academic session.

According to the School and Mass Education Department, a total of 1,678 errors have been identified across textbooks covering multiple subjects and classes. The books were developed by the Directorate of Teacher Education and the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) as part of a curriculum overhaul aligned with NEP 2020. Rahul Gandhi Accuses Centre of 'Shielding' Dharmendra Pradhan After CBSE Officials Transferred.

The mistakes came to light after the textbooks, which were delayed due to printing issues, were distributed to schools. Teachers reviewing the books reported numerous spelling mistakes, factual inaccuracies and incorrect descriptions.

One of the most widely discussed errors describes Sir Isaac Newton as a “great pilot” instead of a scientist. Another passage incorrectly states that Newton boiled “water” instead of eggs, while the intended anecdote referred to him mistakenly boiling his watch while absorbed in an experiment. CBSE Chairman Rahul Singh and Secretary Himanshu Gupta Transferred Over OSM Portal Fiasco.

Several geographical and cultural errors have also been flagged. A photograph of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly was identified as the Odisha Legislative Assembly, while an image of the Hampi temple complex was used in place of the Konark Sun Temple. Humma salt pans were incorrectly located in “Berhampur district” instead of Ganjam district, and Niyamgiri was described as being in Jharkhand rather than Odisha.

Officials also found mistakes in mathematics, science and geography textbooks. In some cases, wheat was written as paddy, glass as cup, temperature as pressure, food web as food cycle and equinox as equator. Errors were reported in Odia, Hindi, Sanskrit, English and Urdu textbooks.

School and Mass Education Minister Nityananda Gond said, “The present govt implemented NEP-2020 after coming to power, a reform that had not been undertaken by the previous administration. Based on NCERT books, the department prepared 55 new Odia-medium textbooks for Classes I to VIII for the 2026-27 academic session.”

He added, “We had formed a steering committee to oversee implementation of the new education policy and based on its recommendations, SCERT prepared the textbooks. The books were prepared within a short period, which may have resulted in some printing and editing errors. We have identified the mistakes and the process to rectify them is underway.”

The department said a corrigendum has been issued to schools and corrective measures are being taken to ensure students are not affected during the academic year.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 19, 2026 12:00 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).