Fake toppers cast shadow on Bihar results, 63% fail

A year after the Intermediate Examination topper scam brought nationwide disrepute to Bihar, the examination and evaluation "reforms" implemented by the Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) have reflected in the Class 12 exams results in which more than 7.94 lakh of the 12.6 lakh, or 63 per cent students who wrote the exam, have failed. This is a sharp decline from 2016, when 67.06 per cent of examinees had passed in science and 56.73 per cent in arts stream. The pass percentage of commerce stream declined to 73.76 per cent as against 80.87 per cent last year.

Declaring the Intermediate exam 2017 results, Principal Secretary of Bihar Education Department, R K Mahajan, said, "This year, the BSEB had done extensive preparations to stop use of all types of unfair means in the exams as well as tampering with the evaluation process. The low pass percentage is probably the result of the stringent measures adopted by the Board. We will, nonetheless, analyse the results and take corrective measures, if needed."

According to the BSEB, while only 30.11 per cent students have been able to pass in the science stream, the pass percentage of arts stream stood at 37.13 per cent.

A total of 12,61,793 students had taken the Intermediate exam this year. Of these, 7,04,868 were boys and 5,56,925 girls. If considered stream-wise, 4,49,280 of the 6,46,231 science students (69.52 per cent), 3,30,338 of the 5,33,915 arts (61.87 per cent), and 15,004 of the 60,022 commerce students (25 per cent), have failed in the exam this year.

The BSEB was in the eye of the storm last year, when its Intermediate arts and commerce "toppers" had given ridiculous answers to basic questions from their streams in a post-exam TV interview. Following an investigation, a nexus of school administrators, BSEB officials and the education mafia, granting top positions for large amounts of money, was exposed. The then BSEB Chairman, Lalkeshwar Prasad, and Director of one the "topper-type" colleges, Bachha Rai, are still in jail, apart from several others in the case.

Having learnt its lesson, the BSEB this time reviewed the performance of all toppers by a special committee, before declaring the results. In fact, breaking from the tradition, Mahajan and BSEB Chairman Anand Kishor themselves dialled the toppers and congratulated them on their good results during the press meet on Tuesday.

With 86.2 per cent, Khushbu Kumari of Simultala Awasiya Vidyalaya, Jamui topped in the science stream, while Ganesh Kumar of RNSJN Utkramit Madhya Vidyalaya, Samastipur topped in the arts stream with 82.6 per cent. Priyanshu Jaiswal of College of Commerce, Patna, topped in the commerce stream with 81.6 per cent. The toppers will be rewarded with cash prizes, a laptop and an ebook reader by the BSEB.

This year, the BSEB had taken the help of technology for conducting free and fair examination and evaluation, wherein the students had filled the forms online, the answersheets were barcoded to maintain secrecy and strict security arrangements like CCTV cameras had been put in place.

8L OF 12L FLUNK

• Bihar Board Class 12 exam results show that over 7.94 lakh of the 12.6 lakh or 63% students have failed
   
• This is a sharp decline from 2016, when 67.06 % had passed in science and 56.73% in arts stream.