32,000 Fake Textbooks Seized as NCERT, Delhi Police Bust Major Piracy Racket in Ghaziabad
Delhi Police Crime Branch and NCERT officials raid printing unit in UP’s Loni, seize fake books and machinery
New Delhi, Jan 17 : The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), in coordination with the Delhi Police Crime Branch, seized around 32,000 pirated textbooks from an illegal printing unit in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, on Friday, exposing a large-scale counterfeit book racket.
Acting on specific intelligence, the Crime Branch conducted a raid at a printing facility located in Village Jawli, Loni, Ghaziabad. During the operation, officials recovered thousands of fake NCERT textbooks meant for multiple classes and subjects. Two printing machines, aluminium plates, paper rolls and printing ink were also seized, indicating organised and continuous illegal printing activity, according to an ANI report.
Action linked to earlier FIR
The raid was carried out in connection with an earlier case registered by the Crime Branch under FIR No. 336/2025 dated November 11, 2025, under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Copyright Act, 1957.
Officials from NCERT’s Publication Division were present during the raid and assisted police in identifying and verifying the counterfeit textbooks. NCERT reiterated that the unauthorised printing, sale or distribution of its textbooks is a criminal offence.
The council said pirated books often contain printing errors, poor quality material and incorrect content, which can adversely affect students and undermine the education system. NCERT urged parents, students and booksellers to purchase textbooks only from authorised vendors and to report suspected cases of piracy to authorities.
Over half of NCERT posts vacant
Meanwhile, official data presented in the Rajya Sabha on December 17 revealed that NCERT is functioning with more than half of its sanctioned posts vacant. Of the total 2,844 sanctioned posts across its headquarters, regional institutes and departments, only 1,219 positions are currently filled, leaving 1,625 vacancies across Group A, B and C categories.
The information was shared by the Ministry of Education in response to a query raised by Rajya Sabha MP Samirul Islam regarding vacancies, contractual appointments and recruitment at NCERT over the past five years.
At the Central Institute of Educational Technology (CIET), only 45 of the 116 sanctioned posts are occupied, while at the North East Regional Institute of Education (NERIE), just 26 out of 55 positions are filled.
