The plan to provide free notebooks to government school students from the 2026–27 academic year, announced last year by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah during a state-level Teachers’ Day event, is now “under review,” according to School Education and Literacy Minister Madhu Bangarappa.

The Chief Minister had originally stated that notebooks would be distributed free of cost along with textbooks, and the same promise was later made by the education minister at several public events.

However, the absence of any mention of this initiative in the state budget and in the official request for textbook requirements for the upcoming academic year suggests that the distribution of free notebooks is unlikely.

Responding to a question in the Legislative Council, the minister confirmed that the policy is currently being reviewed. When asked whether the finance department had rejected the proposal, he clarified that it is still under consideration at the government level.

As per the September 2025 announcement, the scheme aimed to cover students in 46,000 government schools and 7,000 aided schools starting from 2026–27.

Meanwhile, remedial learning materials under the Marusinchana programme will now be provided only to students who have not reached expected learning levels. Launched in 2023 to help students achieve age-appropriate competencies, the programme initially distributed worksheets to all students but was later limited to select learners in classes 6 to 10.

Inputs from TOI

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