CBSE Students Face Major Issues with On-Screen Marking System
More than two weeks after the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) announced Class 12 results, thousands of students are still raising serious concerns about the On-Screen Marking (OSM) evaluation process. Many complain that their scanned answer sheets are blurry, supplementary booklets have gone missing, and in some cases, pages from other students’ copies have been mixed in with their own responses.
The board has yet to provide a satisfactory response to these mounting grievances, leaving students and parents frustrated and anxious about their academic futures.
The Scale of the Scanning Challenge
Over 17 lakh students appeared for the Class 12 examinations this year. Board officials earlier stated that approximately 98 lakh answer booklets were evaluated through the OSM system. Most answer sheets typically run between 35 and 40 pages, and according to sources, a large number of students request supplementary booklets during exams — often one, two, or even three additional copies.
When calculated, this means the board had to scan a staggering 40 crore pages in total. Education experts, parents, and students alike are questioning how such an enormous volume of answer sheets could be scanned simultaneously without errors, and what kind of quality control measures were in place during the process.
Board Claims Resolution, but Students Remain Unconvinced
Despite CBSE’s repeated assurances that student complaints are being addressed, the relief promised on paper has not translated into real-world solutions. More than four lakh students have already applied for re-evaluation of their answer sheets. However, hundreds of students remain unable to even submit their applications because they have not yet received access to their scanned answer copies.
The lack of transparency and the slow pace of resolution have only deepened the distrust among stakeholders who rely on these results for college admissions and career planning.
Missing Supplementary Booklet Costs Student Marks
Devansh Khatri, a Delhi student, visited the CBSE office in Patparganj on Wednesday to personally lodge his complaint. He alleges that all 16 pages of his Accountancy supplementary answer booklet have gone missing from the scanned records. Despite scoring an overall 89 percent in Class 12, Devansh received only 60 marks in Accountancy — far below the 75-plus he had expected based on his performance in the exam.
When he applied for a copy of his scanned answer sheet, he discovered the supplementary booklet was entirely absent from the scanned images. Devansh believes the booklet was lost during the scanning process itself. This is not an isolated incident — earlier, another student named Vedant reported that the scanned copy of his Physics answer sheet contained supplementary pages belonging to a different student.
A Student’s Nightmare: 58 Percent Instead of Expected 80
Shalini, another Delhi student, arrived at the CBSE office in a state of distress. She had confidently expected around 80 percent marks in her Class 12 exams but received only 58 percent. Her mother, she says, is in shock over the unexpectedly low score.
Shalini’s marks in English and Mathematics were particularly disappointing. In Mathematics, she received just 51 marks despite anticipating at least 75. She applied for scanned copies of her English, Physics, and Mathematics answer sheets, but the Mathematics copy never arrived. Even more troubling, she found that questions where she expected three marks had been marked as zero.
Her emails to CBSE have gone unanswered, forcing her to visit the board’s office in person to seek clarification.
Entire Answer Sheet Belonged to Another Student
In yet another alarming case, a student from Dwarka Vihar in Najafgarh reported that when she received her scanned English answer sheet, only the first page was hers. Every subsequent page belonged to a different student’s response booklet. Her parents, viewing this as a serious case of negligence and procedural irregularity, have sent a legal notice to CBSE through their lawyer.
Experts Demand Accountability
Keshav Aggarwal, Vice President of the Coaching Federation of India, emphasized that students have been raising questions about the evaluation methodology for 15 days now, and CBSE owes them clear answers. He pointed out that Class 12 results play a decisive role in shaping a student’s future opportunities, making accuracy in evaluation a matter of utmost importance.
JS Rajput, former Chairman of NCERT and a respected educationist, echoed similar sentiments. He stated that if any error has occurred on CBSE’s part, the board should acknowledge it and take corrective action without delay.
The growing number of complaints and the lack of a swift, transparent resolution process have cast a shadow over the credibility of the OSM system. Students who have worked hard throughout the academic year now find themselves caught in a bureaucratic maze, uncertain whether their final scores truly reflect their efforts. As the board continues to face questions from all quarters, the need for a clear, honest, and student-friendly resolution has never been more urgent.
