The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Union government and the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to apprise it of “remedial steps” taken to address concerns surrounding the procurement and rollout of the board’s on-screen marking (OSM) system, while observing that evaluation discrepancies had caused considerable “frustration” to young students.
Event Context
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana said it was not questioning CBSE’s decision to adopt the digital evaluation system but was concerned about the “teething problems” that surfaced during its implementation.
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HT had reported that the CBSE’s governing body had recommended pilot implementation across regional offices before a nationwide rollout, a suggestion that was not adopted. An internal observation report prepared after a January dry run had also flagged 36 technical, operational and evaluation-related issues.
HT also reported that the contract for the OSM system was awarded to Coempt Edu Teck just 74 days before the Class XII board examinations, after multiple tender modifications during the procurement process.
The CBSE later discontinued the use of Coempt’s OnMark platform for the re-evaluation process amid concerns over the security of student and examination data.
Player Focus
“We are seeking assistance not in an adversarial way…or commenting on your right to have the On-Screen Marking (OSM) system. What concerns us is that there are some teething problems and you are also acknowledging it,” the bench told solicitor general Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre.
Mehta informed the court that the petitioner’s individual grievance relating to his mark sheet was already addressed, but added that the petition also sought broader reforms in the conduct of board examinations through the OSM system.
“He had some issues with his own marksheet which has been provided now. The petition also seeks some general reforms. We have appointed a one-member committee of S Radha Chauhan,” Mehta submitted.
The bench, however, underlined the anxiety caused to students due to the reported glitches. “Look at the amount of frustration young children have,” the CJI observed. Assuring the court of the government’s cooperation, Mehta said: “We will assist the court. We are not taking it adversarial.”
The bench then proceeded to direct the government and CBSE to place on record the corrective measures taken so far.
“We have requested the solicitor general to assist the court and apprise the remedial steps taken by the CBSE,” the court said in its order.
The developments followed sustained criticism from parents and teachers, as well as a series of HT reports highlighting concerns over the implementation of the digital evaluation mechanism.
Team Analysis
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The public interest litigation, filed by Rakesh Binjola, seeks a regulatory framework for conducting CBSE board examinations through the OSM evaluation system and the constitution of a high-powered committee to supervise its implementation.
It also seeks relaxation of minimum qualifying marks for students who have already secured provisional admissions or cleared entrance examinations, contending that alleged flaws in the evaluation process adversely affected their board scores.
The matter comes against the backdrop of mounting scrutiny over the procurement process for the OSM platform and reports of irregularities in its nationwide rollout for evaluation of Class XII answer scripts.
On June 2, the Centre constituted a one-member inquiry committee headed by retired IAS officer S Radha Chauhan to examine the procurement of services for the OSM system. The committee was asked to submit its findings to the department of personnel and training within a month.
The same day, the government transferred then CBSE chairperson Rahul Singh to the ministry of agriculture and repatriated CBSE secretary Himanshu Gupta to his parent cadre. The Centre also appointed Prashant Lokhande as the new CBSE chairperson.
