Going to school will be less burdensome for students as their bags will get lighter by at least 25 per cent from the next academic year. In response to increasing concerns over the strain that growing children endure on their shoulders with heavy school bags, the School Education Department is bringing down the thickness of paper in textbooks to lighten the load.
From 90 Grams per Square Metre (GSM), the paper thickness of the textbooks will be reduced to 70 GMS — resulting in the lightening of the school bags between 25 per cent and 30 per cent, depending on the class. Preliminary estimates suggested that the Class X textbooks, which now weigh around 4.5 kg, will come down by one kg once the paper thickness is reduced.