CBSE collected ₹16.47 crore from students in post-Class 12 result processes: RTI data

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) collected ₹16.47 crore (unaudited) from students seeking scanned copies of evaluated Class 12 answer books, verification of marks and reevaluation after its 2026 board examinations, according to an October 14 reply to a Right to Information (RTI) application filed by HT on August 22. The board said its finance division had not received any “sanction order” for payment to its on-screen marking (OSM) vendor, Coempt Edu Teck, for scanning Class 12 answer books, and that the finance section had no information on penalties imposed on the company.

CBSE disclosed ₹3.57 crore (unaudited) in refunds to candidates whose marks increased following reevaluation, equivalent to 21.68% of the combined collections. However, it did not disclose the number of beneficiaries, the total number of unique students who applied for the three services or subject-wise changes in marks. Several students told HT they received no refund despite an increase in their marks.

CBSE did not respond to HT’s queries seeking clarification on the figures, refunds, vendor payments and penalties.

“OSM evaluation and re-evaluation was a big mess. I have never seen so much chaos in my decades of experience as a teacher and a school administrator,” said a principal of a CBSE-affiliated school in Gurugram, requesting anonymity. One student who usually topped a subject saw his marks rise by 30 after reevaluation, the principal said, adding that delays cost several students opportunities to apply to foreign universities.

CBSE conducted its Class 12 examinations from February 17 to April 10 and declared results on May 13, with the pass percentage falling to 85.20% from 88.39% in 2025. Amid concerns over OSM, the board on May 17 reduced fees for scanned answer books from ₹700 to ₹100 per subject, verification of marks from ₹500 to ₹100, and reevaluation from ₹100 to ₹25 per question. It also promised a full refund if a candidate’s marks increased following reevaluation.

Students could apply for scanned copies from May 19 to 26, while the portal for verification and reevaluation remained open from June 1 to 7.

In its September 28 RTI reply, CBSE said 1,27,146 applications seeking 3,87,399 scanned answer books had been received by 7.30 pm on May 20. Separately, it reported that 11,37,560 answer books had been scanned and sent to students by 6 pm on May 26, the extended deadline for applications. The latter figure was nearly three times the number sought in the earlier applications, a difference the reply did not explain.

“It is to inform that the CPIO [Central Public Information Officer] can provide information available on record,” CBSE said in its response.

A student who appeared for the 2026 examinations said portal glitches prevented him from submitting a reevaluation request for 32 questions across five subjects, which he believed could have increased his score by 27 marks. “I had paid ₹500 and had got all my scanned copies. I had my IISER Aptitude Test (IAT) on June 7 and after coming back to home following examination, I filled in all 32 questions for re-evaluation by 10.45 pm on June 7, but the portal logged me out and I could not log in again despite trying for an hour,” he said.

A Delhi school principal said more than half of the school’s Class 12 students applied for reevaluation. “One student’s marks rose from 78 to 100 in one subject, while three to four students secured full marks in their respective subjects after the re-evaluation process,” the principal said. “The evaluation process has not been student-centric,” the principal added, describing the experience as one of “days of harassment and heightened anxiety.”

In its October 14 reply, CBSE disclosed ₹11.37 crore (unaudited) in collections from scanned-copy requests and ₹5.10 crore (unaudited) under the combined category of verification and reevaluation. “CBSE does not maintain the collection figures for verification of marks and separately revaluation. The receipts under both [verification of marks and re-evaluation of answers] categories are compiled under the same head of account,” it said.

Responding to a question on money CBSE had paid the Hyderabad-based Coempt EduTeck company for implementing the system, the board said: “As per the records maintained in the Finance Division, no sanction order for payment towards the scanning of Class 12 examination answer books to any company/firm has been received in the Finance Division till date.” The finance section also said “no such information” was available responding to a query on penalties imposed on the vendor.

HT reported on June 1 that CBSE would penalise Coempt EduTeck, for shortcomings in the online evaluation. The August 2025 tender provides for financial penalties, including ₹1 lakh for every 15-minute delay in rectifying an issue flagged by CBSE. It also prescribes fines for delays in submitting root-cause analyses and providing technical support and training. However, on September 20, 2025, corrigendum removed key references to blacklisting before Coempt was awarded the contract on December 5.

A former Class 12 student now studying at Delhi University said she spent around ₹1,000 on scanned copies, verification and reevaluation for five subjects in which her marks were below expectations. “Although my marks increased across subjects, I did not receive any refund,” she said. Her overall score rose from an expected 88% to 89.9%, short of the 92% she had hoped for.

Another student said his marks increased by five to 15 marks across subjects, raising his overall percentage from 89% to 92%, but he too received no refund.

Praneet Mungali, trustee of Sanskriti Group of Schools in Pune, said access to scanned answer books and re-evaluation could improve transparency and accountability, but the “process must distinguish genuine assessment errors from differences in students’ expectations.” He cited bandwidth problems, inadequate training and uncertainty among students over evaluation accuracy during the transition to digital assessment.

RTI also sought minutes of CBSE’s 143rd governing body meeting. The board replied that “no meeting of the nature referred to in the RTI application has been held”. CBSE usually holds governing body meetings in June and December; the last two were held in June and December 2025.