Code hooks Madhyamik errant duo: Students barred from test for clicking questions

 In Malda, WhatsApp images of the question paper were circulated from two exam centres about one-and-a-half-hours after the start of the test at 10am, a board official said

An outsider writing answers near the madhyamik exam centre in Englishbazar from where the question got leaked on Friday.: Soumya De Sarkar

SUBHANKAR CHOWDHURY, SOUMYA DE SARKAR | TT  |  03.02.24: A secret code embedded in each Madhyamik question paper, introduced this year, helped detect two candidates who officials said took pictures of their Bengali papers and circulated them on the first day of the exams on Friday.

The West Bengal Board of Secondary Education, which conducts the Class X board exams, barred the two examinees in Malda from writing the exams any further.

Students wrote their first language papers on Day I.

In Malda, WhatsApp images of the question paper were circulated from two exam centres about one-and-a-half-hours after the start of the test at 10am, a board official said.

The Madhyamik tests are of 3-hour duration.

“We came to know a little after noon that images of the Bengali paper were circulating in Malda. We were able to identify the two offenders within half an hour by tracking the secret codes in the question papers,” said a board official.

How did the board track the students, who were writing their papers from separate centres?

“We printed 9,23,045 question papers, each with a unique secret code. The board has the details of each question paper. We knew exactly where the question papers were. The board received the circulated images around 12.15pm. We could read the hidden codes from there. The students were identified after we spoke to the venue supervisors, additional venue supervisors and invigilators concerned,” said board president Ramanuj Ganguly.

“By 12.35pm, we could pinpoint the two offending students and their admit cards and registration cards were seized. They have been reported against.”

This newspaper is not naming the students and the schools where they wrote the test to protect the identity of the minors.

Instances of question papers circulating on social media within minutes of the start of the Class X board exams have been reported over the past few years.

This is the first time the board has been able to track down the alleged offenders.

Metro reported on Friday that the board would introduce coded Madhyamik papers this year. On every page of the question paper, the serial number is hidden.

The board announced that if anyone took a picture of the question paper and circulated the image, the examinee could be identified from the code in the image.

Mobile phones are anyway banned at examination centres.

Board president Ganguly told reporters on Friday: “The instances of question papers getting circulated through smartphones had almost become a trend over the past few years. This year, we have been able to track the offenders and have taken action against them. I hope this measure would act as a deterrent.”

Malda district magistrate Nitin Singhania said: “It (the mischief) is one of the reasons why the code was put in question papers from this year. Even then, a section of students seems to be desperate to resort to unscrupulous means.”

Ganguly admitted that they did not have any mechanism to frisk examinees, so entry of the candidates into exam halls with mobile phones could not be prevented.

“It has to be borne in mind that it is not possible for us to frisk candidates, who are around 16 years old. The guardians will have to be alert. Frisking minors could raise questions,” he said.

However, unlike earlier years, the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE) that conducts the exam, managed to identify two examinees with the help of the QR codes printed on the questions and cancelled their registrations for leaking the papers.

Two others, who were found preparing chits while reading the leaked question papers on their cell phones near an exam centre were arrested.

Police sources said that around 10.45am, that is, about an hour after the examination commenced, the Bengali question paper leaked from Raigram High School which is in Amrity area of Englishbazar block. At the institution, examinees from Sovanagar High School and Nagharia High School, which are in the same block, had their seats.

Soon, a similar leakage was reported from Bedrabad High School in Kaliachak-III block of the district. Students from Chamagram High School had their seats here.

As officials of the district administration learnt about the question paper leak, a team led by Pankaj Tamang, the SDO (Sadar) of Malda, reached Raigram High School. A police team from the local Milky police outpost also reached the venue and detained two outsiders busy preparing chits outside the school. Later, they were arrested.

A member of the examination conducting committee constituted by the WBBSE said that in due course, one examinee each from both the exam centres was identified.

“Since each question paper bore a unique QR code this year, it was easier to identify those who had clicked photos of the question paper and sent those via smartphones to outsiders. Their registrations have been cancelled and they cannot sit in the exam this year,” the committee member said.

In Malda, question paper leaks are not uncommon.

“It is one of the reasons why the QR code was put in question papers from this year. Even then, a section of students seems to be desperate to resort to unscrupulous means during Madhyamik. These examinees must understand that they can be easily identified this time,” said Nitin Singhania, the district magistrate of Malda.