Odisha Matric Exams 2024: AI camera detects irregularities during English exam, several booked for malpractice

The Artificial Intelligence (AI) camera installed at examination centres in the ongoing Matric exams this year has detected many irregularities across the state. Several students were booked for malpractice during the English exam on Friday after the camera sent alerts during the conduct of exams.

As per the Board of Secondary Education (BSE) which conducts the Matric exams in the State, the question paper packet was opened before its scheduled time specified by the Board on Friday. Similarly, some examinees at Palai High School in Jajpur were found possessing incriminating materials which were caught by Board officials.

The question paper was not kept in the iron chest at Bandhagaon Nodal High School in Bhadrak after receipt from the despatch team. Examinees of Hatadihi School in Keonjhar were seen moving all over the exam hall talking to each other during the English exam in the presence of the invigilator on Friday.

The invigilator at the Government High School in R Udaygiri was seen not taking any action despite students making disturbances in the exam hall in a bid to take advantage of each other.

The conduct of examination was very poor in all the exam halls at Govt UG High School in Jabaguda, Dabugaon, Nabarangpur. As many as eight students of the same exam centre were booked for malpractice on Friday.

Sources said, more than 40 cases of malpractice were caught from several exam centres across the State by the AI camera. And the BSE has directed the District Education Officers (DEO) to take disciplinary action against the invigilators and centre superintendents found to be erring in conducting the exams.

The Board has reported the matters to the School and Mass Education department and the police seeking necessary action from their ends.

A total of 5,51,611 students are slated to appear in the examination this year which commenced on February 20 and will continue till March 4.

The BSE has made 3,047 examination centres for this purpose. Similarly, the Board has made 21 police stations in remote areas as its nodal centres.

In a bid to put a check on malpractice, the BSE has put all the examination centres under CCTV surveillance and the data is live-streamed to the Command Control Centre at the BSE office in Cuttack.