An invigilator by name Prasad distributed additional answer sheets to the SSC students instead of original OMR sheets in Vijaya Public School at Chalapalli village in Krishna district on the first day of the public examination on Monday.
The students, who noticed the mistake, alerted the invigilating staff. The teachers distributed the original answer sheets 15 minutes later to the students and asked them to use the main answer sheets only. But, by that time, some students had written answers on the additional sheets.
On receiving information, parents, who were waiting outside the examination centre, staged a protest over the “negligence” of the invigilator.
Suspended
District Education Officer M.V. Krishna Reddy, who visited the centre, pacified the parents and the students. He relieved the centre's Chief Superintendent Shivarama Krishna of duty and announced suspension of Prasad.
The DEO told The Hindu that a requisition had been made through a report on the incident to the SSC Board to value the answers on the additional sheets of the students of the particular centre, taking it as a special case.
The invigilators gave 15 minutes additional time for the students in the centre, the DEO said.
Contrary to the DEO's version, the parents and the students alleged that the staff did not allot additional time. The answer sheets had been collected at the scheduled time, they said.
Mr. Krishna Reddy said 57,096 students attended the examination on the first day and 870 were absent.
Except for the Challapalli incident, the examination was held peacefully in all centres in the district.
