CBSE Reduces Answer Sheet and Rechecking Fees After Student Complaints

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) reduced the fees for obtaining answer sheets, verification, and re-evaluation on 17 May 2026 (Sunday) because many students and teachers complained that there is a possible loss of marks due to OSM (On-Screen Marking).

CBSE defended the digital evaluation system, saying that it is an internationally accepted and transparent method of assessment. They also mentioned that OSM was being used by several institutions such as Delhi University, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), the International Baccalaureate, and Cambridge boards.

The CBSE has reduced the fees for verification from Rs 500 to Rs 100 and obtaining a scanned copy of the answer sheet from Rs 700 to Rs 100, and the re-evaluation fee per question has been reduced from Rs 100 to Rs 25.

According to the previous records, this year’s class 12 percentage went from 88% to 85%, which also made students doubt the evaluation process and whether it has affected the scores.

CBSE officials said that they had experimented with OSM first as a pilot project in 2014, but the system could not work because of restrictions in scanning infrastructure, bandwidth, and digital evaluation capacity across regions. According to the Ministry of Education, the above problems have been solved and improved now and are ready to use.

Sanjay Kumar (school education secretary) has said that there is no direct correlation between OSM and the decline in marks or percentage. According to him, there is no change in the marking scheme. He also stated that approximately 98.6 lakh answer sheets were evaluated digitally this year, and 13,853 answer sheets were checked and evaluated manually.

Officials said the board would continue with the re-evaluation process and examine all applications. The window to apply for scanned answer sheets will remain open from 19 May to 22 May and for verification/re-evaluation from 26 May to 29 May.