New Delhi: Pirated NCERT books and printed material worth around Rs 35 lakhs were seized during a raid in Mandoli on Monday. The mastermind of the scam was apprehended during a raid on the go down in Mandoli, Shahdara district. On Tuesday, Rajesh Deo, DCP Crime Branch, informed that 80,000 printed sheets had been discovered, from which 12,000 pirated books might be made.

The Delhi police claim that with this arrest, they have uncovered a piracy syndicate that was printing and distributing books from the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) across India. The location yielded a considerable quantity of documents bearing the NCERT watermark as well as over a huge cache of pirated books worth Rs 30 lakh, according to the officer. The demand for NCERT books is always high, and it has risen even higher since the HRD Ministry made it mandatory for CBSE affiliated schools.

These books are published only in government authorized printing houses. But, several unauthorized printing presses take advantage of the high demand and bring out the pirated copies. Although these books are identical to the original copies, they’re made of poor quality paper and ink which are hazardous to children’s health.