Govt. U-turn: Students of classes 5, 8, 9 to be given answer sheets for board exams

State government provides answer sheets for classes 5, 8, and 9 board exams after backlash.

Reversing its earlier decision, the State government announced on Friday (March 8) that it will provide answer sheets for students in classes 5, 8, and 9 who will take the Summative Assessment-2 (Board Exams) starting on Monday across the State.

Earlier, the government asked students to bring their own answer sheets, drawing the ire of the opposition. The issue was also discussed in the recently concluded legislature session. Parents and School Development and Monitoring Committees (SDMCs) also demanded a rollback of this decision. 

The government’s about-turn comes a day after the High Court’s Division Bench allowed the State government to hold board exams for classes 5, 8, and 9 on Thursday. These exams will be held as per schedule from March 11 to March 18.

Last year, the government provided answer booklets with questions printed and space for students to answer them. However, this year, the government will give students separate answer sheets.

According to the circular issued by Karnataka School Quality Assessment and Accreditation Council (KSQAAC), class 5 students will be given one answer sheet of 4 pages at a cost of ₹4, class 8 students will be given two answer sheets of four pages each at a cost of ₹12 and class 9 students will be given 3 sheets of 4 pages each at a cost of ₹18, for every subject. The cost of the answer sheets will be borne by the Karnataka State Examination and Assessment Board (KSEAB).

“The government has instructed us to provide answer sheets to the SA-2 of classes 5, 8 and 9 and bear the complete cost. We will provide ruled answer sheets to the students writing these exams,” said H.N. Gopalakrishna, Director, KSEAB.