After CBSE re-exam order, Prakash Javadekar asks engineering students to help plug paper leaks
The question paper of CBSE Class 12 economics exam that was held on March 26 and that of the Class 10 maths exam, conducted on March 28, were leaked on social media hours before the scheduled time.
Union human resource development minister Prakash Javadekar on Friday asked engineering students to develop a distribution system that could prevent the leak of question papers as outrage mounted over the Central Board of Secondary Education’s decision to reconduct Class 10 mathematics and Class 12 economics exams after the tests were circulated on social media.
Javdekar is facing protests by students, who have accused the board of negligence and demanded immediate action against the guilty, and youth leaders from the Congress party. The agitating students said they were “suffering because of CBSE’s mistakes” as they held demonstrations in several parts of Delhi.
The main opposition party has blamed the Centre of doing little to check malpractices in the examination system and demanded Javdekar’s removal as well as the sacking of board’s chairperson Anita Karwal.
“In a vast country like ours, where you have to distribute question papers to millions of students, how to do it? The paper is printed at some place. Then it is packed in another place. It is sent to the centres. There are so many places. How to ensure that nobody can breach the security? You have to build this firewall,” Javdekar said in New Delhi on Friday .
Javadekar was speaking during the second edition of Smart India Hackathon 2018 – claimed to be the world’s largest – in which more than 10,000 engineering students from across India will try to find solutions to around 340 problems faced by various ministries and state governments. The hackathon is being organised jointly by the ministry of HRD, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), Inter Institutional Inclusive Innovation Centre (i4C) and Persistent System. The two day final is being held across 28 centres in India including the New Delhi Institute of Management (NDIM)
Javadekar said that organisers of exams like GRE and GMAT have question banks and every candidate gets a randomly different question paper.
“But, we want a single question paper at all centres simultaneously. This always has possibilities of being leaked. I am throwing this challenge because I am very sure that the new generation, which wants transparency and merit to prevail, will come up with brilliant solutions,” the minister said.
“I am throwing this challenge to the students. It is an open innovation challenge. After the hackathon is over some people can work and give us suggestions,” he said.
The question paper of Class 12 economics exam that was held on March 26 and that of the Class 10 maths exam, conducted on March 28, were leaked on social media hours before the scheduled time.
The board has said all 1.7 million Class 10 students and 500,000 Class 12 students will have to take them again, admitting that the question papers had leaked in advance.
It is likely to announce the dates for the retests on Monday.
Get latest news on Education, Bihar Board 12th Result 2024 Live along with Board Exam, Competitive Exam and Exam Result at Hindustan Times. Also get latest Job updates on Employment News