As teachers join strike, class 10, 12 results may be delayed

Mumbai: This year, the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) class 10 and class 12 results may be delayed as thousands of teachers have joined the indefinite strike by state government employees demanding the return of the old pension scheme

Mumbai: This year, the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) class 10 and class 12 results may be delayed as thousands of teachers have joined the indefinite strike by state government employees demanding the return of the old pension scheme.

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Around 70 lakh answer sheets, of class 10 and 12, remain at exam centres and not a single one has been checked in the last four days as thousands of teachers from government-aided schools and junior colleges in the state have joined the strike.

Senior officials of the education department said about 50 lakh class 10 answer sheets and 20 lakh class 12 answer sheets are lying in all the divisional boards.

“Although teachers are cooperating in conducting examinations, they decided to stop assessing answer sheets. Therefore, more than 50 lakh answer sheets of class 10 are still lying in examination centers,” said Jalindar Sarode, an executive member of Shikshak Bharti, a teacher’s union.

“Now the government must take some action on our demands. If the strike continues for next week, it may delay examination results,” he added.

Mukund Andhalkar, coordinator, Junior College Teachers Federation, said, “We have completely stopped checking class 12 answer sheets. The government alone is responsible for the delay. Keeping in mind the interest of the students and overall education, the government should urgently resolve the old pension scheme strike.”

The MSBSHSE officer also accepted that evaluation of answer sheets of classes 10 and 12 has been stalled. “Although the teachers participated in the strike, they did not obstruct any examination-related work. However, evaluation of the answer sheets has been stalled due to strike,” said an official.