The Supreme Court on Friday, August 14, 2026, a asked the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to examine how students affected by their Class 12 scores under the new On-Screen Marking (OSM) system could be protected in subsequent admission processes.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana was dealing with concerns over alleged irregularities in the digital evaluation of CBSE answer sheets. The Court was specifically informed that some students had appeared for entrance examinations but could not meet minimum eligibility marks because of their CBSE scores, while some admission processes had already begun.
Background of the Case
The petition challenges the manner in which CBSE introduced OSM for Class 12 answer-sheet evaluation in 2026. Under the system, physical answer sheets are scanned and evaluated digitally.
The plea alleges that teachers were not given adequate formal training before implementation. It also raises concerns about pages allegedly not being scanned, unclear scans and answers remaining unevaluated.
CBSE's official records show that the Board issued its OSM introduction circular on February 9, 2026, followed by instructions relating to teacher data, mock evaluation and monitoring.
The petition further claims that the alleged evaluation problems affected students seeking admission to higher educational courses.
Court's Observation
During the hearing, the Bench focused on the immediate difficulties faced by students whose admission opportunities may be affected by their board examination scores.
“Please find out how can you protect their interest,” the Court told CBSE, asking the Board to explore an appropriate way to address the students' concerns.
The Supreme Court had earlier also expressed concern over complaints surrounding the OSM system, observing that students were facing considerable frustration because of problems in digital evaluation.
Decision
The Supreme Court directed CBSE to examine the issue and determine how the interests of students facing difficulties in entrance-based admissions because of their CBSE scores could be protected.
The matter was thereafter adjourned.
