NCERT slashes textbook prices for Classes 9-12 by 20%: Affordable education for all
As a part of a much-needed step to reduce the cost of education, NCERT declared a 20% decrease in textbook prices for classes 9 to 12. NCERT Director Dinesh Prasad Saklani disclosed this at the Bhumi Pujan ceremony held at NCERT Headquarters in New Delhi that would be going to help the students from the next academic year.
The price cut will be provided for NCERT books and it is specific to all grades from 9 through 12, and with new prices implemented from the 2026-27 academic session onward. The NCERT Books for classes 1 to 8 would continue to come at Rs 65 per copy as per the new directive. It is an effort to smoothen out the affordability issue that arises in seeking quality education by students and parents alike.
With such upgrading in the purchase of papers and inducting more recent printing technologies, it will decrease the price of NCERT books. To take textbook sales to each village door, NCERT has been associated with giant e-commerce services like Flipkart and Amazon. Thus, at very low prices, students shall be able to reach textbook books even in a far corner of the nation, or say, villages, during this program as envisioned by the federal government.
Every year, the NCERT prints around 4 to 5 crore textbooks and it covers around 300 titles. In the coming year, the council plans to increase its output to 15 crore textbooks to meet the growing demand. It is for the first time that the NCERT is bringing down the prices of textbooks. Parents, teachers, and students all have welcomed this move by the council.
The new pricing structure is expected to reduce the financial burden on families, especially in rural areas, and promote education for all. The council will collaborate with leading e-commerce platforms to ensure greater availability and easier access to textbooks for millions of students across India.
