It was pulled up over its ‘experiment’

An attempt at an out-of-the-box solution to the problem of exam malpractice has landed a college administrator in Haveri in Karnataka in hot water with the authorities.

Faced with the problem of malpractice, educational institutions routinely step up surveillance — some even installing CCTVs in exam halls — while other rope in strict invigilators to crack the whip.

On October 16, when the students of the Bhagat PU College arrived for their mid-term exam, they were handed specially modified cartons to cover their heads. The cartons had an opening on one side, which allowed the students to see only in front of them and ostensibly prevented them for looking anywhere else but at their answersheets.

The cartons were college administrator Satish’s solution to prevent examination malpractice. While the students found it cumbersome, they were not allowed to violate the “new rule”.

However, Deputy Director of Pre-University Education S.C. Peerzade visited the college as soon as he came to know about it and stopped the “experiment”.

Speaking to The Hindu on Friday, Mr. Peerzade said he happened to see a photograph of students writing examination with their heads covered by cartons, which the college administrator had posted on his WhatsApp account.

“When I went to the college, most of the students had cartons over their heads. I sought an explanation from the administrator. To my shock, Mr. Satish told me that he was just experimenting with what he had seen in a Bihar college,” Mr. Peerzade said.

“A show cause notice has been issued,” he said. The college administration was not available for comment.