Mumbai: Unlike last year where five question papers of the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) examinations were leaked on social media sites 30 minutes before the examination began, this year not a single such incident occurred in the Mumbai region. The Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) claims that the primary reason for this is the eradication of mobile phones from the entire premises of the examination.
Also, now question papers are sealed in an envelope and only unsealed in the classroom the moment the exam commences, i.e. at 11 am for the morning slot and at 3 pm for the afternoon slot. Each envelope will have only 25 question papers to avoid extras.
Till last year, the moment the question papers reached the examination centre in the morning — approximately half and an hour before the exam — bundles were opened, segregated and allotted class-wise for the teachers at the staff room. This year, this process has been scrapped as many question paper leaks had occurred. “Photos were clicked which were later circulated on social media sites that were accessed by students before the exams began,” said a board official, who did not wished to be named.
This year, the English and Chemistry papers were leaked by some outsiders. However, the board and the state education department didn’t term this a “leak” as it occurred after 11.45 am when the students had already started writing their exams.
