Assam: SEBA orders re-examination of English subject after paper leak in Cachar district

Assam’s Board of Secondary Education (SEBA) has issued a notification ordering 760 students from a particular examination center at JR Higher Secondary School in Cachar district to re-appear for English subject in the Compartmental examination, 2023, due to alleged cheating and malpractices during the HSLC examination on March 3.

The decision came after Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma took cognizance of the incidents of cheating and paper leaks and directed SEBA to take action against the examination centers where paper leak incidents are taking place.

SEBA’s notification stated that a section of candidates from center no. B23-0138, JR Higher Secondary School, Ganirgram, of Cachar district was reported to have used unfair means during examination hours, compromising the sanctity of the examination. The answer scripts of the students of JR Higher Secondary School, Ganirgram, of English subject held on March 3, 2023, will not be evaluated.

On the second day of the HSLC examination, the question paper for the Mathematics subject was leaked on March 6 in Cachar district, where it went viral on social media platforms within 15 minutes of the exam's start. It is suspected that the pictures of the question paper were leaked from an examination center in Lakhipur. The Cachar Education Department is yet to comment on the paper leak incident.

Earlier, on the very first day of the exam, the question paper of the English subject was reportedly leaked from Barpeta district. However, SEBA’s Secretary and Exam Controller Narnarayan Nath had dismissed the reports as false and baseless, claiming that the question paper went viral on social media almost two hours after the exam started.

The recent cheating allegations and paper leaks in the ongoing HSLC examination have raised concerns over the security measures taken by the SEBA to ensure a fair and transparent examination process for students.