Barak excels in science & commerce, vocational scores crash

Silchar: The Higher Secondary (HS) examination results declared Tuesday delivered a mixed outcome for Barak Valley, with gains in science and commerce across Cachar, Hailakandi and Sribhumi, but a steep slide in the vocational stream — most sharply in Sribhumi — raising concerns over technical education.In science, Sribhumi led the region with a 92.32% pass rate, followed by Cachar at 88.14% and Hailakandi at 81.17%. Educators said the strong performance reflects a growing tilt toward STEM education in the three districts.Cachar topped commerce with a 77.48% pass percentage, with 884 of 1,141 candidates clearing the exam. Sribhumi posted 73.59% and Hailakandi 69.68%.Arts results showed wider variation. Sribhumi again led with 79.73%, with 7,337 of 9,202 candidates passing. Hailakandi recorded 62.85%, while Cachar stood at 59.83%, where nearly 5,000 candidates failed.The vocational stream recorded the weakest performance across the valley. Cachar posted 43.18% and Hailakandi 25%. Sribhumi reported 9.09%, with only one of 11 candidates passing; the lone successful candidate secured a first division.The results have triggered debate over infrastructure, training quality and student support for vocational courses. "The results are a wake-up call," said a local educator. “We cannot talk about development while our vocational training centers produce such dismal outcomes. There is an urgent need for targeted intervention,” he added.