CBSE to scrap division or distinction for board exams

The Central Board of Secondary Education will not award any overall division or distinction in class 10 and 12 board examinations, a senior official said on Friday.

The board will continue the practice of awarding marks in each subject and it is for the higher education institution or employer concerned to calculate the aggregate, if required, the official said.

"No overall division, distinction or aggregate of marks shall be awarded. Also, if a candidate has offered more than five subjects, the decision to determine the best five subjects may be taken by the admitting institution or employer," CBSE Examination Controller Sanyam Bhardwaj said.

Bhardwaj said the board does not calculate, declare or inform the percentage of marks.

"If the percentage of marks is required for higher education or in employment, the calculation, if any, may be done by the admitting institution or employer," he said.

Earlier, the CBSE also did away with the practice of issuing merit lists to avoid unhealthy competition.

The decision to not announce the merit list was taken in 2020 during the COVID-19-induced lockdown when the results were being announced using the average of marks secured by students in the exams. However, the board decided against resuming the practice in post-pandemic years.

The board exams for class 10 and 12 will begin from February 15, 2024, the CBSE had announced in May.

The Ministry of Education had earlier this year decided to announce exam schedules much in advance to sync the academic calendar and help students prepare for entrance exams.

However, the datesheet for the exams is yet to be announced.

More than 28,000 schools are affiliated to the CBSE in India and 26 other countries.

More than 21 lakh candidates had appeared for the CBSE class 10 examinations last year and over 16 lakh candidates for the class 12 board exams.