Center prevents on-screen marking for CBSE Class 12 answer sheets, reduces revaluation fee

More than 94,000 students scored above 90% while more than 17,000 candidates scored above 95% in CBSE Class 12 board results. File | Photo credit: ANI

Amid concerns expressed by students and parents over the ‘on-screen marking (OSM)’ system for evaluating Class 12 answer sheets, the Union Education Ministry and the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Sunday (May 17, 2026) defended the method.

Union Education Secretary Sanjay Kumar and CBSE Chairman Rahul Singh told reporters in New Delhi that OSM aims to improve the transparency of the system and that students can go for revaluation at a lower cost. When asked if any study was done before the new system was launched, the officials said that the only change in the system was that the evaluators, rather than evaluating hard copies of the tables, are doing the marking process on screen. “So it’s not a difference. That has to be appreciated,” Mr Singh said.

Mr. Kumar said that OSM is a practice used by various national universities, educational institutions and also many foreign universities. Seeking to allay concerns about the new system among students and parents, he said it would improve grading and transparency. He said that CBSE had introduced OSM in 2014. “At that time, it was felt from a technical point of view that it would not be possible to continue it immediately due to the existing infrastructure and setup. However, we have reintroduced it this year,” he said.

The Union Secretary said that earlier assessments were generally conducted within the geographical jurisdiction of the respective regional authorities. “However, with OSM, it is now possible to get answer sheets evaluated outside the regional office area,” Kumar said. He said institutions such as the International Baccalaureate (IB) and the Cambridge Board use OSM. “In fact, it has become the norm internationally because technology allows us to do the whole system more transparently,” he added.

Officials said 98 lakh answer sheets were scanned for Class 12 and three levels of security were maintained during the process. “It was found that despite repeated scanning, there were still some legibility issues as the ink used in some of the answer sheets was very light in colour. Even after scanning, these scripts could not be fully legible,” Mr Kumar said. When asked about remedial measures, he told examiners to evaluate scripts manually and award marks accordingly. “More than 13,000 such answer sheets were identified separately and checked manually. After manual evaluation, the obtained marks were entered into the system,” he said.

Officials informed that CBSE has reduced the mark sheet inspection fee from ₹700 to ₹100. “If they want verification or validation of the answer sheet, it will also cost ₹100 instead of ₹500. If they want to recheck any particular answer, the fee will be ₹25 per question,” Mr. Kumar said, adding that if a student’s marks increase during the revaluation, the amount will be refunded. “We are more concerned with the welfare, well-being and mental state of our children. Money is important, but it is not the priority in this particular matter,” he said.

Published – 17 May 2026 14:18 IST