‘Make common centres for exams with few takers’
MUMBAI: The third day of the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) exams had a handful of students writing the first language papers.
Each paper, such as Marathi, Urdu, French, Pali and others, had between three and six takers in each institution.
This has prompted schools and colleges in Mumbai to approach the state board, asking it to assign common centres for these papers.
Holding exams for a few students puts a strain on their resources, schools and colleges in Mumbai said.
On Thursday, only 9 students had registered for Sindhi, 30 for Pali, 5,089 for French, and 9,598 for Urdu, among others. Exams were held across 557 centres in the Mumbai division, which includes Palghar, Thane and Raigad. Similarly, 215 examinees wrote Pali and 446 took the German exam on Wednesday. Some subjects such as Hindi Applied and defence studies had just one student.
At MVM School and Junior College in Andheri, three students appeared for Urdu and three for French. The centre, which usually gets over 300 students, and stayed open till 6pm on Thursday. “You conduct an exam for one student or a hundred, the resources required are the same,” said Shantilal D Shah, principal of the junior college. “The staff stayed back till 7pm to complete the exam.”
Board officials said that it was an unpractical move.
“It is unfair to students to assign them multiple centres,” said Siddheshwar Chandekar, divisional secretary. MUMBAI: The Maharashtra state board received complaints on Thursday that the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) Marathi paper had been leaked out on social media five minutes before it was handed out to the examinees. Screenshots of the question paper were allegedly circulating on a social networking platform in the morning. Refusing to term it a leak, the Mumbai division has decided to complain to the cybercrime cell on Friday.
Previously, in 2015 and 2016, book-keeping and accountancy papers had been similarly released on Whatsapp.
According to the Mumbai division, which also includes Thane, Palghar and Raigad, they got hold of the actual images at 5pm. Students had entered the halls by 10.30am and got the papers by 10.50am. Over1.17lakhstudents appeared for the paper from the division.
“It could have been anybody, a student or a teacher,” said Dattatray Jagtap, divisional secretary, who received the complaint. “It is not a leak, it is a malpractice.we are going to file a complaint with the cyber crime cell on Friday.”
When asked if they will consider holding a re-exam, officials said that the paper might not have many as they were in exam hall by 10.50am.