Bengaluru: Three years after it was first proposed, the State Education Department will finally see a centralised body to conduct SSLC and Pre-university board exams. The merger was mooted by the Siddaramaiah government in 2017. “The merger will happen shortly,” said Primary and Secondary Education Minister S Suresh Kumar, speaking on the sidelines of the launch of a teacher-friendly app. 

The minister’s announcement comes in the backdrop of the state’s plan to effectively implement the “nationalistic and holistic” National Education Policy. A top official in the minister’s office told TNIE that the unified board will be a reality soon. “The Class 10 SSLC and Class 12 PUC board  examinations of 2021 will be managed by the unified board,” he said. The reason it did not make any headway despite being announced in 2017, was because it was only proposed and not executed. “Now, the department is ready with administrative changes,” the official said. 

SSLC-PU board merger: Crucial meeting to be held next week

The SSLC Board, which is looking after the modalities of the merger, is expected to submit a proposal with administrative details and a meeting is scheduled in this regard next week, a source confirmed. The unified board is meant to ease the administrative difficulties that the PU Board is facing in conducting examinations.

For instance, while the SSLC Board, which is relatively more bigger, generates its own revenue, while the PU Board relies on the government to fund the examination procedure. Now, with the merger, the fund management will be resolved. Secondly, the SSLC Board has an entire contingent of administrators across districts and taluks, such as the DDPIs and BEOs, while the PU Board has none and relies on them for conducting examinations.

Thirdly, the PUE department always had to check with the Primary and Secondary Education Department or the SSLC Board before conducting examinations. Now, with a single examination head, coordination will be better. As per sources, the PU Board will head the new body and there will be no need for recruiting more personnel for micro-managing PUC examinations. Exams would be conducted efficiently and incidents of paper leakage will reduce.

No more punishment transfer for teachers

Kumar also announced that the government has revoked punishment transfers for teachers. Further, he said those who were subject to punishment transfers last academic year, will be offered a transfer on priority this time even as he called the latest transfer policy ‘teacher-friendly’ and one that has been introduced to “offer permanent solutions” to issues surrounding transfers of teachers. He said government schools were being developed as model schools and the best performing schools will be awarded. Also, best teachers will be recognised and felicitated, and their teaching methods will be replicated in other schools.

Edu council to be set up

As the State is looking to be the first to successfully implement the National Education Policy, the Primary and Secondary Education Department will have another administrative head to revamp it. “In view of rejuvenating the primary and secondary education system, an education council will be created,” Minister Kumar said. Details regarding its constitution were not revealed.