Cbse completes full scale digital evaluation of class 12 answer books

Nagpur: CBSE evaluated every single Class 12 answer book digitally this year, completing the first full-scale rollout of On Screen Marking (OSM) at the Class 12 level in what the board described as the biggest OSM exercise conducted so far. A total of 98,66,622 answer books were evaluated without a single physical script being transported to an evaluation centre. Under the traditional system, answer books had to be physically moved from examination centres to evaluation centres, a process that carried risks of loss, damage and delays. OSM eliminates this entirely. Examiners log in digitally, access scanned answer books on screen and award marks using a mouse rather than a pen. The system also automates totalling and uploading of marks, removing two of the most common sources of error in the traditional process. CBSE deployed about 70,000 evaluators across 6,000-plus evaluation centres for the exercise, using 88,000 computers. The daily evaluation capacity under OSM stood at around 30 answer books per examiner per day, compared to 20 to 25 under the traditional method. The system also allowed answer books to be evaluated at any CBSE-affiliated school across the country and abroad, without the books needing to travel to designated centres. The board said OSM ensures every answer is evaluated strictly as per the marking scheme, with the system allowing only scheme-compliant marks to be awarded. This, CBSE said, reduces human discretion in the marking process and improves objectivity. Incomplete evaluation, where an examiner misses a question or section, is also flagged automatically by the system. Since answer books exist only as digital files, the risks of physical loss or damage are eliminated. The board added that OSM also promotes paperless evaluation, doing away with the need to print, pack, transport and store lakhs of physical scripts. For students, the shift to OSM means post-result facilities will focus on re-evaluation of marked answers rather than addressing totalling or posting errors, which the digital system handles automatically. CBSE said re-evaluation facilities would be available from April 18. The board has also extended DigiLocker access to students of CBSE-affiliated schools abroad, allowing them to access digital academic documents, including mark sheets, migration certificates and skill certificates, through the Parinam Manjusha repository at cbse.digitallocker.gov.in.