HP Board tweaks exam system, says it will ensure fairness

The Himachal Pradesh Board of School Education has announced a major change in its examination system, terming it a Diwali gift for students.

Chairman of the education board Dr Rajesh Sharma said that the board will now provide the same set of questions to all students in the board examinations, but the order of questions will differ in each of the three series. Earlier, each series contained different questions, which led to complaints about variation in difficulty levels.

Dr Sharma said the new system would ensure fairness and equal opportunity for all students. He added that the change would make the examination process more transparent and uniform.

The reordering of questions will also help prevent cheating during exams as students will not be able to share answers based on question numbers.

Dr Sharma further stated that Himachal Pradesh will become the first state education board in the country to implement the National Education Policy (NEP) framed by the union government. The training activities for the teachers and the board staff to implement the NEP have already been initiated, he added.

He said the decision to change the examination system in accordance with the NEP has been taken in the interest of students and will make the evaluation process more credible and student-friendly.