According to the draft, the council will be the apex body to regulate books and the book publishing business.[break]
The committee led by Shiva Kumar Rai, member of National Planning Commission, has submitted the draft to the Minister for Education Dina Nath Sharma. The education ministry will now forward the draft to the cabinet for approval.
“The policy focuses on ensuring standard for both local and imported books,” Rai said, adding that the committee has recommended the government to remove Value Added Tax (VAT) imposed on imported books. “It would help stop piracy of books in the market,” said Rai.
According to the draft policy, only the books that meet criteria prescribed in the policy can be selected for curriculum. Only the books written by persons with Bachelor´s degree can be included in primary and secondary level curriculum. Similarly, only the books written by persons holding Masters Degree with experience in teaching and academic sector can be selected for curriculum in higher secondary and university levels, said Rai.
The draft policy also allows the government to scrap license of publishers if they are found printing vulgar contents and graphics.
Strict policy against low grade publications was one of the suggestions given by publishers themselves.
Littérateur Mod Nath Pashrit, representatives of Federation of Nepal Book and Stationary Entrepreneurs, Sajha Publication and Tribhuvan University were among the members of the committee.
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