State order on textbooks upheld

BANGALORE: The vacation bench of the High Court on Friday upheld a notification of the State Government for bids to print and publish school textbooks for 2012-13 to only five states.The petitioner, Jhansi Printing Company, taking exception to the clause that publishers from only the states of Pondicherry, Goa, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh are allowed to participate in the bid, had filed a petition in the High Court contending that printing of textbooks comes under the purview of the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, hence, bidders from all over the country can participate.The High Court, however, dismissed the petition.