THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A question in the state literacy mission's second year Higher Secondary equivalency exam has courted controversy after a few candidates who attended the exam found it objectionable and detrimental to communal harmony.
The Literacy Mission and the Higher Secondary Exam Board blamed each other for the fiasco. 'Are minorities a threat to the unity and integrity of the country? Explain.' - this was a question in the Sociology paper of Higher Secondary equivalency exam that turned controversial.
The candidates were given a choice of answering it or choosing an alternative question - 'Examine the steps taken by the country to address issues faced by minorities'. Literacy Mission director PS Sreekala said the Mission will recommend to the Higher Secondary directorate to conduct a detailed inquiry into the incident and take appropriate action.
"The literacy mission recommends a panel of question setters to the directorate. The panel comprises of teachers who are also usually involved in preparing the study material for the course," she added.
Sreekala said it was the Higher Secondary Exam Board which selects the question setters from the panel provided by the Literacy Mission. Higher Secondary Joint Director (Examinations) Vivekanandan S S said the responsibility of the question paper content rests solely with the question setter.