What is OSM? CBSE Evaluation System for Class 12 scored ‘Pakistani’ for Delhi Student

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE)’s new OSM system for Class 12 has come under scrutiny due to growing complaints alleging glitches and inconsistencies in the re-evaluation process. The escalation of complaints has prompted CBSE to respond individually to the affected students, providing necessary clarifications and corrective action.

Concerns over CBSE’s on-screen marking (OSM) stem from claims by students that scanned copies of their answer sheets uploaded by the board do not match their handwriting, raising concerns about possible mismatch of the answer sheet in the on-screen marking (OSM) system.

Among all the complaints and allegations, one in particular from a Class XII student named Vedant Shrivastava went viral, drawing more attention to the issue. Vedant, a student from Delhi who was trolled, abused and called a ‘Pakistani’ on social media after reporting discrepancies in the CBSE OSM system, claimed on May 23 that the physics answer sheet uploaded by CBSE under the re-evaluation process was not his.

The system enables faster evaluation, wider participation of teachers including external schools, reduced logistical costs, and environmentally sustainable operations, according to CBSE.

CBSE said that under OSM, verification of marks after result will not be required.

While CBSE says there is no difference between the traditional assessment method and OSM, the joint secretary (coordination) of the board, in an email to Vedant Shrivastava, acknowledged the mismatch and said his marks would be reviewed soon. HT reviewed the message sent to the student.

Vidant applied for scanned copies of his answer sheets on May 19 after receiving what he described as “unexpectedly low marks” in physics.

When he received the scanned copies on May 23, Shrivastava noticed that the physics text uploaded to his list number was not his.

He took to X to highlight the discrepancy, sharing side-by-side screenshots of texts from his English and Computer Science answer papers to prove that the handwriting in the physics paper is not his.

“I studied for a whole year. I sacrificed sleep, peace of mind, outings and everything for these exams. And now I don’t even know if my actual physics paper was checked or not. Do students really deserve this?” he said in a post on X on May 23.

By Monday evening, Vedant’s post had gone viral, surpassing 3.2 million views (over 32k). However, Vedant did not know that highlighting the discrepancy would turn into a larger controversy on social media, with some netizens calling him a “Pakistani”.

Many users also accused him of trying to damage CBSE’s image and questioned why his X profile site showed “South Asian”.

Among those who initially called the student a “Pakistani” was journalist Ashok Shrivastav of Doordarshan News. He later apologized, but his comments sparked backlash online.

In an email, reviewed by HT, the joint secretary (coordination) of CBSE acknowledged the mismatch pointed out by Vedant and said his marks would be reviewed soon. HT reviewed the message sent to the student.

A senior CBSE official confirmed the error but refused to explain why the mix-up occurred.

“We have contacted Vedant Shrivastava today and sent him the correct answer copy through his email. His marks will be updated accordingly,” the earlier HT report quoted the official as saying, on condition of anonymity.

However, the official refused to explain how the wrong answer sheet in Physics was uploaded against Shrivastava’s registration number, saying, “We will delve into the matter and share the details later.”

Meanwhile, another Class XII student, Sanjana, claimed on social media that the chemistry answer sheet uploaded during the re-evaluation process did not match her handwriting. She claimed that while the first page of the answer booklet bearing her personal details appeared to be hers, the inner pages did not match her handwriting.

Sanjana also said that CBSE replied to her email and confirmed that her concerns about the Chemistry answer sheet were valid.

“Update: CBSE has responded to our email and confirmed that our concern about the chemistry answer sheet was valid. Thank you to everyone who helped in bringing attention to this. Your support means a lot. Waiting for next steps from cbse now,” she said.

She also shared the screenshot of the email received from the board, which read: “Dear Candidate, We have received your complaint regarding the incorrect Chemistry answer sheet copy you received. We have looked into the matter and found that your concerns are valid. We have found your correct answer sheet.”