Malda teacher nabbed photographing paper; staff suspensions reach 10

Kolkata: A Life Science teacher of Mathurapur BSS High School in Malda has been suspended after being caught photographing the Madhyamik question paper on a mobile phone during the examination, West Bengal Board of Secondary Education president Ramanuj Ganguly said on Thursday.

The incident occurred during Wednesday’s Life Science paper. Ganguly said the teacher took the question paper to a toilet and clicked photographs, an act detected by an additional venue supervisor.

The report reached the board on Thursday, after which the suspension order was issued, with disciplinary action to follow. Officials said disciplinary action could include censure, withholding of increments, stoppage of promotion, reduction of pension, or dismissal from service, depending on the gravity of the offence.

A general diary has been lodged and the phone seized. Under board rules, staff must deposit mobile phones before entering centres. The board has sought the deposit register and eight days of CCTV footage to check for lapses.

This is the second suspension from the same school. Earlier, a mathematics teacher was suspended for allegedly entering a room, writing answers on a loose sheet, and dictating responses during the History paper.

In a separate incident, at Ajhapur High School in East Burdwan, six teachers, one non-teaching staff member, and the headmaster were suspended after the officer-in-charge was allegedly attacked during a dispute over a mobile phone at the centre.

With these cases, the number of suspended staff in this year’s Madhyamik has reached ten. Separately, 45 candidates had their examinations cancelled between February 2 and 12 after being found with mobile phones. The examination ended on Thursday with optional papers, with 97,295 candidates at 1,486 venues. Evaluation will begin soon, with scripts distributed on February 15, 22, and 28. About 1,376 head examiners and 52,000 examiners will take part in the evaluation process. Results are expected within the usual 90-day timeframe.

Meanwhile, incidents of some candidates tearing and throwing away their books and notebooks after the examinations were reported. Ganguly said books should be treated as students’ friends and should not be torn. “Schools and guardians should speak to the children to understand why this is happening,” he said, adding that it may be linked to academic pressure and expectations on students.