Himachal Board cancels Class 12 English exam over suspected paper leak

The Himachal Pradesh Board of School Education has cancelled the Class 12 English examination for the March 2025 session across all examination centres in the state following the possibility of a paper leak, officials said on Friday.

The breach was detected at Government Senior Secondary School, Chowari, in District Chamba where the teachers by mistake opened the English question paper of Class 12 in place of Class 10.

According to the schedule, the English paper of Class 10 was on March 7 while the English paper of Class 12 was on March 8.

According to an official notification issued by the Board, an anonymous complaint was received on March 7, alleging that the Class 12 English question paper had been opened before the scheduled date and time.

The Board promptly investigated the matter and verified the claim using video evidence from the "Exam Mitra App", a new monitoring system introduced to enhance examination security.

Himachal Pradesh Board of School Education Secretary Vishal Sharma on Friday said the organisation took a serious view of the matter. Exercising the powers granted under Section 2.1.2 of the Himachal Pradesh Board of School Education Examination Regulations, 1993 (amended up to July 2017), the Board's chairman ordered the immediate cancellation of the Class 12 English examination statewide.

He emphasised that maintaining the integrity of the examination process is a top priority and that any security lapses will not be tolerated. The notification further stated that a new date for the re-examination will be announced in due course and the students are advised to stay updated through official Board communications.

This incident has raised concerns over the effectiveness of current security measures for board examinations. In response, the authorities are reassessing protocols to prevent such occurrences in the future. The Board has assured the students and parents that strict action will be taken against those responsible for the breach.

For further updates, students can visit the official HPBOSE website or contact their respective schools, the officials added.