NAGPUR: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has debunked reports that Std IX and XI exam question papers will be sent by them to all schools. A recent CBSE circular clarified that all such reports and messages circulating on social media are fake.
Apart from forwarded messages on Whatsapp, there were reports of people putting up such information on their Twitter and Instagram posts while passing them off as ‘news’.
While CBSE did not name any person or site, its controller of examination Sanyam Bhardwaj did not leave any doubt about the board’s stand. “It is clarified that it’s fake news and there is no such plan on the agenda of CBSE. It is reiterated that you do not believe any such information which is circulating on social media but is not available on the board’s website,” wrote Bhardwaj in the circular.
A principal told TOI that their teachers had received such messages and it created confusion. “Parents get such messages from some group and blindly forward it in their class groups. Even if such message is sent for inquiry purpose only, it creates a lot of panic because parents want instant answers.
For us, the only resource available are the emails which CBSE sends (circulars, notifications etc) or the board’s website. So if there’s no such information we have to say there’s nothing yet, but parents want to know whether something like this is being planned. Now, we can’t answer that and hence these rumours start to spread,” said the principal.
With CBSE now issuing an official denial, schools can breathe easy. Another teacher said, “Actually, this should be the default reaction by CBSE, to immediately confirm or deny things. Else it just means dozens of questions from a hundred parents, and we have to weigh our words carefully when speaking. Because any unintended wrong information can set off another chain of events.”
