MPBSE Class 12 boards: Disabled students get extra time, separate paper

Hundreds of disabled students in Madhya Pradesh began their Class 12 board examination on Thursday.

Updated on: Mar 3, 2018, 16:02:58 IST

Hindustan Times, Bhopal | By Shruti Tomar

Prefer HTon Google

Share via

Copy link

Hundreds of disabled students in Madhya Pradesh began their Class 12 board examination on Thursday on a special note as the Madhya Pradesh Board of Secondary Education (MPBSE) introduced several measures, including separate question papers and formatted laptops and tablets, to help them write their answers.

Class12 students write Madhya Pradesh state board exam in Bhopal on Thursday. (PTI)

Disabled students had to answer a common paper till last year, but the pattern has been kept the same for all the 7,69,000 students taking the Class 12 exam this year.

“In a bid to provide all the facilities and equal opportunity, the board has come up with the decision of providing extra time [of an hour]. We have ensured a gap of at least three days between two papers and that’s why a separate timetable has been introduced for the students,” the education board’s chairperson SR Mohanty said.

The step was taken after a disabled Class 10 student from Balaghat lodged a complaint last year that his right to equality was violated as he was not provided with a writer to take the exam.

Taking a cognizance of the matter, the Madhya Pradesh Human Rights Commission asked the board to provide the basic facilities to such students.

Apart from the 549 Class 12 students, 850 such candidates who will take the Class 10 board exam from March 5 will also be provided with the same facilities.

Mohanty said the board has enforced several measures to stop students from cheating during the exams.

“The board has asked the exam centres’ heads to book students caught using unfair means for a criminal action which means an imprisonment of three years and fine up to Rs 5,000,” he said.

Students were asked to take off their shoes and girls had to remove their jewellery at centres marked as sensitive. Teachers at the exam centres have been also been barred from using mobile phones, tablets and any kind of device.

Nearly 20,00,000 students, including 11,48,000 Class 10 examinees, are appearing for exams conducted by the board.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shruti Tomar
I have spent over a decade chronicling Madhya Pradesh’s political and social landscape, covering politics, investigative journalism, crime, human interest, and government policy, blending sharp insight with ground‑level depth. I have closely tracked three assembly elections, three Lok Sabha elections, leadership transitions in MP while exposing governance lapses, tender irregularities, and flawed policy rollouts. My reports have revealed gaps in the Cheetah project, irregularities in medical education, rigging in recruitment exams, and loopholes in policy implementation. In crime reporting, I have moved beyond FIRs to map systemic patterns — from organised crime networks and gender‑based violence to custodial accountability — balancing urgency with sensitivity. My journalism is defined by a commitment to human interest. I have profiled the marginalised Bancchda community, documented atrocities against tribal groups, and highlighted efforts to preserve their culture through heritage liquor and revival of spiritual practices. I have reported on farmers struggling with failed MSP promises, giving voice to those often reduced to statistics in policy files. Passionate about field reporting, I have reported on rampant sand mining in Chambal and Narmada, pharmaceutical companies supplying medicines under altered names, the dire condition of schools and colleges, the plight of commercial sex workers, and skewed sex ratios in specific districts. Beyond deadlines, and as HT’s state correspondent and assistant editor in Madhya Pradesh, I engage with ministers, farmers, students, and activists, believing the best policy stories begin with a single human voice. A postgraduate in Journalism and Mass Communication, I also hold a diploma in sports journalism.Read More

Stay informed with the latest updates on Education News also check CBSE Class 10 Result and Find tips to help you succeed in your academic journey and career planning on Hindustan Times.