Paper Leaked on First Day of Haryana's 12th Board Exams

The first day of Class 12 board examinations in Haryana has been marked by cheating incidents and a paper leak. The English exam, which began today (February 27) at 12:30 PM, was leaked within the first 30 minutes in Nuh and Punhana areas, raising serious concerns about exam security.  

According to reports, videos have emerged showing the question paper being photographed and circulated outside exam centers. In one video from Mount Aravalli Public School in Nuh, someone inside the center is seen passing the question paper to people waiting outside, who then photographed and shared it. 

Police Chase Away Crowds Gathered for Cheating 

Large crowds of relatives and acquaintances of students were spotted outside examination centers in Nuh district. At Mev High School center, police had to chase away people who had gathered to help students cheat during the exam. 

The situation was equally concerning in Sonipat district, where several young men were seen climbing walls at the Jatwada examination center to pass cheat sheets to students inside. Some were even passing handwritten notes in the exam hall.

Anti-Cheating Measures Prove Ineffective 

This breach happened despite the Haryana Board of School Education implementing extensive anti-cheating measures for this year's exams. Board Secretary explained that they had formed 219 flying squads for surprise inspections, including 22 district-level flying squads, 70 sub-division flying squads, 21 rapid action force teams, 8 special task force teams, 2 control room flying squads. 

Additionally, Section 163 has been imposed around all examination centers, ordering the closure of photocopy shops and coaching centers in the vicinity during the exam period.

Security Features on Question Papers Failed to Prevent Leak

The Board had introduced special security features this year, including alpha-numeric codes, QR codes, and hidden security features on each question paper. These were meant to trace the source if any paper was leaked. The Board Secretary had stated that these features would immediately identify which student's paper was leaked and from which center. 

"If a paper leak is detected from any examination center, strict action will be taken against the center superintendent, supervisors, and students involved in cheating," the Board Secretary had warned before the exams began. 

Large-Scale Examinations Underway

Today's examination involves nearly 2 lakh regular students (1,98,160) and an additional 25,232 students from distance education programs. The Board has set up 1,431 examination centers across the state for the Class 12 exams, which began at 12:30 PM and will continue until 3:30 PM.  Most examination centers were supposed to be under CCTV surveillance to prevent paper leaks and ensure transparency.

Board officials have not yet made an official statement about the paper leak. According to previously announced policies, if a paper leak is confirmed, strict action should be taken not only against students caught cheating but also against examination center officials.