Supreme Court seeks status report on CBSE’s digital evaluation system

The Supreme Court on Wednesday expressed concern over issues faced by students due to the CBSE's On-Screen Marking (OSM) system for evaluating Class 12 board examination answer sheets and sought a status report from the Centre. A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana, was hearing a PIL seeking regulation of the digital evaluation mechanism and remedial measures for alleged irregularities. The court asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta to assist in resolving the issue, stressing that the proceedings were aimed at finding a permanent solution rather than being adversarial. The Centre informed the court that most individual grievances had been addressed and that a one-member panel headed by S. Radha Chauhan had been constituted to review the OSM system and recommend reforms. Taking note of the submission, the apex court directed the Centre to file a status report detailing the steps taken to address the concerns. The matter will be heard next on July 24. The petition alleges that the OSM system, introduced this year, suffered from scanning errors, portal glitches, missing pages and incomplete evaluation, resulting in arbitrary assessment and violation of students' rights. It also claims teachers lacked adequate training and seeks re-evaluation, an independent inquiry and safeguards for future digital assessment. The Delhi High Court is also hearing a separate PIL challenging the fairness and transparency of the OSM system. (IANS)

Also Read: Supreme Court issues notice on fresh pleas challenging CBSE’s three-language policy