The Ministry of Education has escalated its scrutiny of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE)’s On-Screen Marking (OSM) system, seeking a detailed report on the awarding of the contract to service provider COEMPT. Officials have indicated that if any procedural lapses or irregularities are found in the tendering process, strict action may be recommended against responsible officers. The ministry has already collected initial documents and is reviewing the entire procurement process, including the roles of officials involved in the decision-making. According to sources, the review aims to determine whether all mandated procedures and eligibility criteria were followed while selecting the service provider. CBSE has been asked to submit comprehensive records related to the tender, including documentation of the evaluation process and contract approval steps.
The controversy has also highlighted significant changes in the contract’s enforcement provisions. While the original August 2025 tender reportedly allowed CBSE to take strong actions such as issuing show-cause notices, forfeiting performance bank guarantees (PBG), terminating contracts, and even blacklisting vendors in cases of serious lapses, a September 2025 corrigendum removed the blacklisting provision entirely. As a result, under the current contract framework, CBSE retains the authority to impose financial penalties, forfeit security deposits, and terminate agreements, but does not have the power to blacklist the vendor. The absence of this provision has become a key point of concern amid the ongoing review.
The contract also includes strict penalty clauses, such as fines of ₹1 lakh for every 15-minute delay in resolving critical issues flagged by CBSE, and additional penalties for delays in submitting root-cause analysis reports. In severe cases, security deposits may be forfeited or contracts terminated, but enforcement remains limited to financial and contractual actions. Meanwhile, CBSE has stated that it is actively addressing vulnerabilities in the OSM portal. The board said that cybersecurity experts from various government agencies and IITs have been deployed to strengthen the system. According to CBSE, several issues have already been resolved, while further improvements are underway.
The controversy surrounding OSM began after a Class 12 student alleged that a scanned Physics answer sheet uploaded during the re-evaluation process did not belong to him. The claim, which went viral on social media platform X, prompted similar complaints from other students, raising questions about the system’s reliability. Government sources have acknowledged reports of around 20 cases of answer sheet mismatches during the digital evaluation process. Out of more than 9.8 million answer sheets scanned, approximately 68,000 required rescanning due to quality issues, while over 13,000 still did not meet the required clarity standards even after reprocessing. The developments have intensified scrutiny of the OSM system as authorities continue their investigation.
