Mangaluru: A policy gap in the Karnataka School Examination and Assessment Board (KSEAB) has cost the state's II PUC Science topper a coveted seat at the prestigious Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS), Pilani, after she was unable to produce an official certificate declaring her the state topper.
Princilla Cardoza, who scored 599 out of 600 marks to emerge as the Karnataka II PUC Science topper for 2025-26, was denied admission under BITS Pilani's Direct Admission to Board Toppers scheme because she could not produce a certificate from KSEAB confirming her status as the state topper.
While BITS Pilani requires official certification from education boards for direct admission offered to state and central board toppers, KSEAB maintains that it neither awards ranks nor issues topper certificates.
In a written reply to Cardoza, the Board said no such system exists and advised her to rely on its published "Combination Wise List of Toppers". The list, released on April 9, places Cardoza first in the Science stream with 599 marks, with no other student securing the same score.
According to Vijay Moras of the Centre for Advanced Learning (CFAL), where Cardoza pursued her PUC, the issue extends beyond a single admission.
Many premier institutions, including Vellore Institute of Technology and the International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad, offer direct admissions, scholarships or special entry schemes for board toppers, all of which require official confirmation from the respective examination boards.
Karnataka students, however, are unable to access such benefits because KSEAB does not issue topper certificates.
The Learning Centre Trust, which runs CFAL, has written to BITS Pilani and KSEAB seeking a permanent mechanism under which the Board would issue, on application, an official attestation confirming that a student features in its published list of toppers.
It has also urged the Department of School Education and Literacy to establish a standard procedure before the 2027 II PUC results so that future toppers are not deprived of national opportunities because of an administrative omission.