Marks moderation policy debate: state board students may suffer

 The Delhi High Court order staying scrapping of the marks moderation policy has not only left CBSE students in limbo, but also certain state boards that have already declared Class XII results.

The CBSE, which has 18,500 affiliated schools, has so far been silent on whether it will challenge the decision or follow it, amid indications that it would move the Supreme Court, which may further delay the announcement of results.

The CBSE along with 32 other boards had last month agreed to scrap the moderation policy. The HRD ministry had clarified that the states can take a call on the issue.

The Delhi High Court this week ordered the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) not to go ahead with the scrapping of its moderation policy.

Education boards in Rajasthan, Karnataka and Punjab have already announced results without spiking marks in the name of “moderation”. Tamil Nadu and Haryana have also announced their results, but it is not clear whether they have followed the moderation policy or not.

Ashok Pandey, chairperson of the National Progressive Schools Conference, said, “If CBSE decides to follow the policy, then students from state boards will suffer in undergraduate admissions as they will not meet the cut-offs.”

Punjab School Education Board chairman S Balbir Singh Dhol said, “We are just examining the situation and contents of the court order. A decision will be taken soon, after wide consultations.”

B L Chaudhury, chairman, Rajasthan Board of Secondary Education, said they never followed the moderation policy.

“We never followed moderation, so the CBSE decision is not likely to impact prospects of our students positively or negatively,” he said.

The Uttar Pradesh board, which is yet to announce the results, said it will follow the CBSE’s decision in this regard.