Missing photos on HSC marksheets causes a flutter

The board had introduced a new format under which the marksheet and passing certificate have been combined into a single document. Accordingly, students’ photographs are now printed on the document to make authentication easier

MUMBAI: Nearly 20 days after the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education announced the Class 12 results, students are reporting problems with their marksheets. According to complaints submitted to the board, some marksheets carry no photographs, while in others the images are so faint that the students’ identities are difficult to verify.

Missing photos on HSC marksheets causes a flutter

More than 16 lakh students took the Higher Secondary School Certificate (HSC) exam this year. The board had introduced a new format under which the marksheet and passing certificate have been combined into a single document. Accordingly, students’ photographs are now printed on the document to make authentication easier.

However, when students received their marksheets from their respective schools and junior colleges on May 25, many found their photographs were either missing or unclear. Students and their parents have since sought clarification from their respective institutions.

A principal from Mumbai-based junior college said marksheets without photos or with unclear photos raise questions about the validity of the document for future admissions.

A student, requesting anonymity, said, “My photograph is not visible on the marksheet. I had submitted a scanned colour photo of myself to my college, according to the specifications.”

In response to the complaints, the board has instructed junior colleges to obtain fresh photographs from the schools and colleges of the students thus impacted, and submit them along with the students’ seat numbers and file numbers. The board has also directed institutions to send a list of students impacted along with digital copies of their photographs so that the marksheet-cum-passing certificate can be reissued.

Also, this year, students were charged ₹20 each for the marksheet and the passing certificate, as in previous years. However, both documents have now been merged, with some questioning the need for collecting separate charges for a single document.

Former vice-president of the Maharashtra State Principals’ Federation Mahendra Ganpule said the board must clarify. Board officials did not respond to attempts to contact them.