With restricted evaluation, UP Board results unlikely soon

Although serving UP Board officials are not willing to comment, they also feel results before July seem very unlikely amid the ongoing situation owing to Covid-19 pandemic.

With the state government allowing evaluation of UP Board’s class 10 and class 12 answer sheets at evaluation centres located in green zones only, results are now expected in July, say teachers and former board officials alike.

Although serving UP Board officials are not willing to comment, they also feel results before July seem very unlikely amid the ongoing situation owing to Covid-19 pandemic.

“The evaluation started in mere 63 centres in the 20 districts that are in green zone from Tuesday. There is uncertainty as to when evaluation in the remaining 212 centres in the districts that are in red and orange zones will start,” shared a senior UP Board official.

UP Board secretary Neena Srivastava confirmed that evaluation process started in the evaluation centres located in districts which are in green zone but expressed her inability to comment on either when the evaluation could start in remaining districts or when the results would be declared.

However, board officials claim that it was unlikely that situation will normalise even when the third phase of the lockdown ends on May 17 and this meant that even after May 17 the evaluation was not expected to start in many districts.

Moreover, with the state government making it clear that proper social distancing norms is to be followed at evaluation centres, the board also faces problem in deputing all 1.46 lakh teachers that it had initially deputed for the evaluation of more than 3.10 crore answer sheets.

“This also means that the process would require 15 to 20 days. So if the evaluation continues till first week of June even then the results would get declared only by first or second week of July as a major part of the result finalisation work is undertaken in Delhi where too coronavirus has impacted routine functioning,” said another senior board official.

Teacher MLC (Allahabad-Jhansi division) Suresh Kumar Tripathi said prevailing situation and past experience point to the fact that the UP Board results could now be expected only in July.

Agrees former UP Board secretary and former director (secondary education) Basudev Yadav. He said evaluation of answer sheets in all districts before end of the lockdown was impossible as ensuring strict social distancing was a tough ask. He also pointed out that even teachers who are to undertake the evaluation in orange and red zones too were not ready to be part of the process owing to safety concerns.