60,000 answer sheets of 17,000 students burnt during Gen-Z protest

By Raman Paudel,Kathmandu, Oct. 18: The answer sheets of at least 19,000 students of the Technical Education and Vocational Training Council (CTEVT) and Tribhuvan University (TU) have been lost in arson during the Gen Z movement on September 8 and 9.

The answer sheets, which were stored in various police stations, were destroyed when protesters set fire to those stations.

Following the incident, both educational institutions, CTEVT and TU, decided to conduct reexaminations for the affected students.

CTEVT reported that at least 60,000 answer sheets belonging to 16,883 students enrolled in Diploma and Pre-diploma programmes were destroyed in the arson.

Deepika Sharma, Deputy Examination Controller, confirmed that answer sheets collected from 18 examination centres in Bagmati Province and five centres in Koshi Province were destroyed.

“Answer sheets from 23 examination centres were destroyed out of 206 centres, while those from 183 centres are safe. Although the incident was unfortunate, most of the answer sheets remain intact,” said Sharma.

Similarly, over 1,500 answer sheets from three examination centres of 652 TU students were destroyed in the arson during the Gen Z movement.

In the meantime, CTEVT has rescheduled examinations for students whose answer sheets were destroyed, as well as for those whose exams were postponed due to the Gen Z protest. 

According to Mahesh Bhattarai, Member Secretary of CTEVT, examinations postponed due to the Gen Z protests are rescheduled to begin from November 16. Examinations for students whose answer sheets were destroyed in the arson are set to start on November 20.

Meanwhile, the Office of the Controller of Examinations, Balkhu, has also decided to conduct reexaminations but has not yet announced test dates. 

Students demand internal review rather than reexams

Some student groups are demanding an internal review method instead of reexaminations, arguing that additional exams cause unnecessary burden and mental stress. Many students, already affected by political unrest and new circumstances, feel unprepared for additional examinations.

A group of CTEVT students recently submitted a memorandum to the CTEVT office demanding internal evaluations by their respective colleges.

Ritika Mishra from Tanahun, a CTEVT examinee, was preparing to go abroad after completing her exams. However, the disruptions over the past month have caused her a deep mental stress.

“Whatever situation I am going through these days has left me unprepared for the reexamination. I’m afraid I won’t perform as expected,” said Ritika.

Speaking to The Rising Nepal, she added that some students are sick, some are pregnant, and some of them have already left the country. 

“The reexamination does not take into consideration the situation of stressed students or those who have already left the country,” she said.

Responding to these concerns, CTEVT officials stated that preparations for reexaminations are nearly complete. Member Secretary Bhattarai explained that they have no alternative but to hold reexaminations.

Speaking to The Rising Nepal, Bhattarai said, “The minister has already issued instructions to conduct reexamination. It is also necessary for maintaining international recognition of the examination process. I believe students get ready for this. It will ultimately benefit their careers.”

He further added that implementing an internal review system would require amendments to several regulations, which is currently not feasible. Instead, CTEVT has tried to ease the burden by allowing students to appear at their home exam centres.

“Of course, we didn’t expect to hold reexaminations, nor did we want the answer sheets to be destroyed. But now that it has happened, we’ve rescheduled exams for the affected students. We all should encourage examinees to prepare for the reexamination,” Bhattarai said.

How costly is the reexamination?

One key concern with reexaminations is the financial burden on the state. Following CTEVT’s decision to hold reexaminations, some officials estimated that at least 4 million rupees would be required.

Hari Datta Ojha, Accounts Officer at CTEVT, stated that the estimated cost for conducting reexaminations in November is around four million rupees. 

“Expenses include staff mobilization, question paper preparation, exam centre operation, lunch provisions, and consultations with the expert team,” said Ojha.