Odisha Board Exam 2023: Over 15,000 students did not appear for the ongoing Class 10th Odisha Board Exam 2023. The issue was raised in the assembly by Leader of Opposition Jaynarayan Mishra of BJP. During Zero Hour, he asserted 'Over 15,000 students did not appear for the ongoing matriculation examination which is highly deplorable,' Soon after this, the opposition BJP and Congress claimed that the education system in Odisha had crumbled.
Girls in remote areas were marrying early
Odisha Schools Minister Samir Ranjan Dash today in the assembly said that the drop-out rate in class 10 matriculation examination had possibly gone up as girls in remote areas were marrying early.
Ridiculing the school and mass education minister for taking photographs with students inside an examination centre, the Leader of Opposition trained guns at the 5T initiative of the state government. The Leader of the Opposition was also supported by Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader Narasingha Mishra, who came down heavily on the state government.
Entire education system is crumbling in the state
“It is a matter of great concern. It only shows that the entire education system is crumbling in the state,” the Congress veteran said. Concerns were expressed in the House a day after the school and mass education minister admitted that the allegation of some girls students not sitting for the ongoing examination as they had been married off, was true.
18,000 students were not giving the matriculation examination
The minister also said that even some boys could not appear for the examination as their parents had shifted to other states as migrant labourers. Meanwhile, official sources said that about 18,000 students were not giving the matriculation examination in Odisha that began on March 10.
While 14,000 students across the state did not appear in the summative-I assessment that was held in November last year, the number increased to 18,000 in the summative-II exam. The assessment of students would be made based on their performance in summative-I, summative-II and internal assessment exams in a 40-40-20 ratio.
Detailed inquiry needed
The minister told reporters outside the assembly that the exact reason behind the large absence of examinees could be known after a detailed inquiry is conducted after the end of the examination. The department will take up the matter seriously and ascertain the causes behind the absence of examinees, he said.
One of the reasons behind the large-scale absence of examinees could be due to the waiving of examination fees by the state government in wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the minister said. As the students did not pay fees, they were not compelled to appear for the examination and therefore remained absent, he said.
Previous years' data
In the 2022 annual matriculation examination, nearly 4,000 students had not appeared for the examination which was attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, 4,412 students missed the examination. Sources in the department said that most of the students who had not appeared for the examination this year were from tribal-dominated and remote areas.
Speaking to reporters later, School and Mass Education secretary Aswathy S said that the department has launched a door-to-door campaign to locate the dropouts across the state. “We will bring back students below 17 years to schools and efforts will be made to impart them vocational education if they are interested in it,” she said.
(with inputs from PTI)
