Growing Outcry Over CBSE's New Marking System; Education Minister States: OSM Is in Students' Best Interest

Resentment among students regarding CBSE’s On-Screen Marking system is on the rise. Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has stated that the glitches identified within the system will be rectified shortly.

A nationwide debate has intensified regarding CBSE’s new On-Screen Marking system—known as OSM. Following the announcement of the Class 12 results, lakhs of students and their parents have been continuously raising concerns. While some are complaining about receiving lower-than-expected marks, others are claiming to have received scanned copies of answer sheets belonging to other students. Several students have even alleged that certain pages of their own answer scripts were missing entirely. Amidst this escalating controversy, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has stepped forward to openly express his support for this digital system.

The Education Minister described OSM as a modern and transparent mechanism—one that is currently being adopted by numerous major institutions across the globe. He acknowledged that, given this is the first time the system has been implemented, certain difficulties have inevitably arisen; however, he assured that no student’s grievance would be overlooked.

In fact, for this examination cycle, CBSE utilized the On-Screen Marking system on a massive scale for the evaluation of answer scripts. Under this process, students’ answer sheets are scanned, converted into a digital format, and transmitted to examiners for evaluation and the subsequent allocation of marks. Following the release of the results, a significant number of students alleged that they had received marks far lower than their expectations. Subsequently, when students downloaded their scanned answer sheets, a host of new issues began to surface.

What did the students say?

The scanning of the answer sheets was unclear.
Several pages appeared to be truncated or cut off.
Answer sheets belonging to other students were visible.
Marks were not awarded despite the presence of correct answers.

Over 4 Lakh Students Request Re-evaluation

According to CBSE, approximately 17 lakh students appeared for the examinations this year. The Education Minister disclosed that a total of 98 lakh answer sheets were evaluated, with each sheet comprising an average of 40 pages. This translates to the scanning of approximately 40 crore (400 million) pages in total. Most notably, nearly 4 lakh students have submitted applications requesting a re-evaluation of their answer sheets. Approximately 1.1 million answer scripts belonging to these students are currently being re-evaluated. Following the receipt of such a massive volume of complaints, pressure has mounted on both the CBSE and the Ministry of Education.

What Did the Education Minister Say?

Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan clearly stated that the OSM (Online Marks Verification) system was introduced in the best interest of the students. According to him, this system is more transparent and provides students with the opportunity to view their own answer scripts. He noted that this marks the first time the CBSE has implemented the OSM on such a large scale. He acknowledged that certain discrepancies have come to light, and he takes full responsibility for them; however, he assured that every single complaint would be resolved. He further added that several universities and institutions across the country are now moving towards adopting similar digital evaluation systems.

Multiple Agencies Lending Support

Given the gravity of the situation, the CBSE has begun enlisting the assistance of several technical agencies. According to the Education Minister, technology-auditing agencies under the Government of India are also monitoring this entire matter. The Ministry has stated that should any technical error or negligence be uncovered at any stage, strict action will be taken.

The Board Launches a New Support System

To assist students, the CBSE has launched a round-the-clock ‘Post-Result Support System.’ Through this facility—introduced by the Board—students can seek assistance regarding their results, answer script evaluations, stress management, and other related queries. To facilitate this, the toll-free helpline number 1800-11-8004 has been fully activated. Additionally, students can contact the Board’s official email addresses—info.cbse@nic.in and result.cbse2026@cbseshiksha.in—to receive immediate assistance. The CBSE has affirmed that every effort will be made to resolve all student-related issues as expeditiously as possible.