24 students denied hall tickets for HSC

MUMBAI: As students across the state prepare for their Higher Secondary Examinations scheduled to be held on February 28, 24 students of KES College (Kandivali Educational Society) will not be able to appear for their exams, as they failed to comply with the attendance requirement of the board.
Seventy-five per cent attendance is a mandatory requirement by the Maharashtra Board, but college authorities had given students a concession of complying with just a 60 per cent compulsory attendance requirement. As the students failed to do so, their attendance records were given to the Maharashtra board.
Defending his stand, G Ramchandran, principal, says, “Last year, we had just one student who failed in the HSC examinations. We are trying hard to keep up to a certain standard and that is why we choose to have a 60 per cent compulsory attendance requirement.”
Ramchandran adds that the students were informed in advance about the attendance requirement. He adds, “At present, the hall tickets are held back by the board. We had no option but to hand the hall tickets to them. Now, it is the board’s decision.” As college authorities seem confident of their stand, the decision has not been accepted by the students and their parents, who have been protesting outside the college for two consecutive days.
Anup Shah, parent of 17-year-old Priyanka, who has been denied her hall ticket says, “The decision to hold back students is unfair. If the college authorities can reduce the attendance requirement to 60 per cent, why not allow all the students to appear. By holding back the hall tickets, they are only playing with the future of our children.”
Parents allege that the college authorities had asked all 24 students to fill in their examination forms and have also taken the examination fee, after which they are being denied their hall tickets.