Many class 10 students fall for fake viral exam schedule, fail to appear for Hindi paper

Mumbai: Trusting a fake exam schedule that went viral, many students appearing for Class 10th board exams failed to turn up for their Hindi paper on Thursday

Mumbai: Trusting a fake exam schedule that went viral, many students appearing for Class 10th board exams failed to turn up for their Hindi paper on Thursday. On Friday, the parents of these students demanded a special examination. However, the school education minister dismissed the demand saying that the exam board is not at fault in this case.

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As per the official timetable of the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE), Hindi exam, as a second language, was scheduled on March 8. However, in the fake schedule that went viral, the same exam is listed on March 9. As a result, many students got confused and did not appear for their Hindi paper.

Dismissing the demand by parents for a special examination, the school education minister Deepak Kesarkar said, “The board is not at fault here. The students were repeatedly told not to believe the viral schedule on social media, but they believed it anyway. These students will now have to take the supplementary exam, which will be held in July.”

Shekhar Sangurde, father of a class 10 student said, “My son failed to appear for the Hindi exam by trusting the viral timetable. He was planning to start preparing for IIT entrance exam after the class 10 examinations. We have also paid fee for IIT coaching classes, but are now tense about what will happen. The government should start sending board examination updates on the social media rather than rely on old communication services.”

Sharad Gosavi, chairman MSBSHSE, said, “It is students’ mistake to believe in the viral timetable. We have been telling not to believe everything that goes viral.”

With their demands for a special examination going unheeded, these students will have to accept their ATKT result, seek admission in class 11, and appear for the supplementary exam in July to clear this subject.

Shrikant Shingare, a counsellor appointed by MSBSHSE’s Mumbai division, said, “We received around five calls from those who missed the Hindi language paper. When we asked them where they got this timetable, they said it was an image printed on a card and circulated by various student groups.”