A large number of volunteers of the Democratic Students’ Alliance of Manipur (DESAM) on Sunday staged a forceful protest at the office of the Board of Secondary Education Manipur (BOSEM), alleging serious irregularities in the supply of substandard and non-watermarked paper for the printing of textbooks and answer scripts.

Raising slogans and demanding an inquiry, the protesters entered the BOSEM office, accusing the authorities of compromising students’ academic interests by allowing the use of poor-quality paper. The protest was led by DESAM President M. Somorjit, who said that around noon, volunteers marched into the BOSEM premises to press for timely supply of textbooks, rejection of low-quality paper for printing purposes, blacklisting of the firm responsible for supplying substandard paper, and a thorough inquiry into the alleged scam by the Commissioner of Education (Schools). The protesters also demanded accountability from the BOSEM Chairman and Secretary.

The situation turned tense following the entry of the protesters into the BOSEM office, prompting the Officer-in-Charge of Imphal Police Station to arrive at the spot along with a police team. After initial confrontation and negotiations, the situation was brought under control.

Later, a meeting was held between three DESAM leaders, the Director of Education (Schools), who also serves as the Chairman of BOSEM, and the Secretary of the board. Speaking to the media after the meeting, DESAM President M. Somorjit alleged that the ongoing process of procuring paper for textbooks and answer scripts shows clear indications of a scam, which he claimed is being deliberately ignored despite a press release issued by the Governor.

He further stated that the government must constitute a high-level inquiry committee to investigate the matter and make its findings public. Warning of intensified agitation, DESAM said that if quality textbooks are not supplied before the commencement of school classes from the 15th of this month, the organisation will launch stronger protests in the coming days.

Maintaining that the future of students cannot be compromised due to administrative negligence and alleged corruption, DESAM asserted that it will continue its agitation until concrete action is taken.