The State government’s plan to merge the Karnataka Secondary Education and Examination Board (KSEEB) and the Department of Pre-University Education (DPUE) to have a single examination board that will conduct the class 10 and 12 examinations for 2020 seems to be a distant dream.
Although the government constituted a committee and a sub-committee to look into the modalities and suggest measures for smooth transition of the boards, no further concrete efforts have been made. A member of the committee said that so far, two meetings were planned and scheduled but were cancelled. A Government Order for constituting the committees was formed on March 1, 2021.
The plan for a common board was mooted in 2016 after the Chemistry II PU examination paper was leaked twice, causing distress to lakhs of students.
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Each year, around 8.5 lakh students appear for the SSLC examination and six lakh students appear for the II PU examination.
According to sources, having a common board would help maintain the confidentiality in the examination process and help DPUE and the Department of Public Instruction look into various administrative matters pertaining to school and PU departments.
A source in the department said: “Having a common board will ensure that more reforms are brought into the examination sector. Further, the separate body can be entrusted with analysing the performance of students so that proper remedial action can be taken in particular subjects or educational institutions,” a source added.
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Susheela S., parent of a class 12 student, said: “Besides conducting the examination in a confidential manner, the board would have helped ensure that the examination this year is conducted keeping in mind the safety concerns of students.”