BENGALURU: Fate of over 16,000 students who are busy preparing for Secondary School Leaving Certificate (SSLC) exams likely to be held in March/April 2018 is hanging in balance. They may not be able to write the SSLC exams, courtesy negligence of their school authorities. As many as 327 schools have not yet renewed their recognition, and hence Karnataka Secondary Education Examination Board (KSEEB) is unable to generate admission tickets for students enrolled in these.
Board officials said despite several reminders, these schools have not applied for renewal of recognition. Their students are now facing the threat of losing an entire year. As per the Karnataka Education Act norms, if any school does not have the KSEEB’s recognition, the school will be considered as unauthorised. “School authorities must apply for recognition renewal immediately. If they approach us in the eleventh hour, we will be helpless,” said an official. Schools have to renew recognition once in every five years.
Meanwhile, the buzz is that some of the schools at taluk levels were denied recognition as they had less than 25 students.D Shashi Kumar, general secretary of Associated Management of Primary and Secondary Schools in Karnataka (KAAMS), however, said, “ That cannot be the ground for not renewing the recognition. The rule of minimum 25 kids was there all these years. But in the beginning of this academic year, the department had issued a revised circular saying that will not be a clause to get recognition of schools renewed. Some officials are misguiding the schools.”
“Schools, which have not yet applied for it, should do it online as soon as possible to avoid any last-minute struggle,” Shashi Kumar added. KSEEB has asked the nodal officers to visit, identify the problems and help the taluk-level schools get recognition renewed.
Rs 50,000 is the cost of renewal of recognition, including Rs 20,000 deposit
8 lakh candidates to appear for SSLC this year
35 students from Bengaluru who could not write their SSLC exams last year as their schools were not recognised