40k Bihar answer papers lie in scrap

In the latest embarrassment for Bihar education department, over 40,000 answer sheets were recovered from two scrap dealers in Gopalganj district. According to police, the duo bought them from a caretaker in a school where they were kept after evaluation.

According to education department officials, the evaluated answer sheets kept in 214 gunny bags had disappeared from a room of SS Girls Secondary High School.

“The officials wanted to verify the answer sheets of students who scored high marks in Class X board examinations. But all the bags were missing. The incident delayed the Class X Board results. The matter is being investigated,” a Bihar board official said.

The SIT, after interrogating the scrap dealers, produced them before the court from where they were sent to jail.

Sources claim that the SIT is also trying to find out the motive behind school peon selling the answer sheets as scrap.

The investigating agency probing the case had earlier detained school’s principal Pramod Kumar Srivastava for questioning.

He was later arrested after police suspected his role in the case.

The Bihar School Examination Board which was scheduled to declare the Class X results this week had postponed it for June 26 due to the incident. Around 1.76 candidates had appeared for examinations which were held in February.

According to officials, verification of papers started after some students with high marks failed to answer basic questions.

We suspect a conspiracy to defame the BSEB which has been trying to conduct examinations in Bihar in a fair manner — ANAND KISHORE, BSEB chairman