Picture this. A Uchcha Madhyamik (Higher Secondary) examinee, Debapriya Sengupta, fails in all her science subjects, Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Mathematics in this year’s exam, yet ranks 1700 in Joint Entrance Examination (JEE). The strange dichotomy is so glaring that it required the High Court to actually examine the answer scripts.
On Debapriya’s seeking justice, the Kolkata HC ordered 2 sets of her answer scripts to be shown during hearing yesterday. One set was from her school’s selection tests, and the other her HS answer papers, which the WB Council for Higher Secondary Education was ordered to produce.
The judge went through both and then decided that Debapriya’s HS answer scripts for the 4 subjects must be re-assessed. It will be done by a committee of 3 examiners, not including those who did it in the first place. The council will then submit a confidential report to the court in 10 days.
If this happens, history of sorts is going to happen in the field of education in left-ruled Bengal. For never before since the council came into being in 1976 did any reassessment take place.
When students not satisfied with marks obtained deposit fee for re-examination, all that the council do is to simply see that all answers have been seen and the marks totaled to make sure there was no mistake.
Predictably, the council is in a dilemma, and may decide to challenge the order if it so feels.
Meanwhile, scores of examinees who feel ‘victimized by poor marking’ in board exams may be looking at obtaining succor from court. For the record, this year at least 25 students who have cleared the JEE but failed in HS, have moved court.
Without doubt many eyes will be riveted on what lays in store for Debapriya in time to come.
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