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West Bengal higher secondary pass percentage falls

KOLKATA: Amid allegations of leaks to a regional television channel, results of the West Bengal Higher Secondary examinations for 2011 were officially released here on Saturday showing a dip in the pass percentage compared to last year. The average pass percentage of candidates this year is 76.54 – a 4.24 per cent dip from last year.

While 82.79 per cent male candidates passed in 2010, only 77.61 per cent made it this year. Similarly, 73.19 per cent female candidates were successful this year as against 78.26 per cent in 2010.

A total of 637, 808 students appeared for the examinations this year in 49 different subjects.

Onkar Sadhan Adhikari, President of the West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education (WBCHSE), attributed the dip to the candidates' poor performance in certain subjects like mathematics, history, economics, philosophy and nutrition, as well as the large number of absentee candidates.

“A total of 20,181 candidates, which is about three per cent of the overall number of students, either did not sit for all the examinations or did not appear at all. It is a matter of concern as to why so many students are opting out even after registering their names. The trend could be related to a lack of confidence among the students and needs to be addressed by teachers at the schools,” Mr. Adhikari said at a press conference. District-wise, Kolkata topped the chart in pass percentage of students with 87.82 per cent while Cooch Behar trailed at the bottom with only 46.18 per cent students passing. A section of the media demanded an explanation from Mr. Adhikari for the alleged results leak.

In a letter to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Leader of Opposition Surya Kanta Mishra had written, “It is a matter of anxiety for candidates and their parents. There was no such precedent in the State for last three decades. For the sake of a healthy education environment and students, you (Ms. Banerjee) should intervene and take appropriate steps to book the culprits in this matter. The State Government should also make its stand clear about it.”

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