Bihar students caught using mobile phones during exam, school headmistress faces action

Several students were seen using mobile phones while appearing for their half-yearly examination at an upgraded secondary school in Begusarai's Bhagwanpur block. A video showing the students using phones inside the examination hall has gone viral on social media.

The incident took place on September 22 at the Upgraded Secondary School in Mokhtiyarpur.

The video shows several students sitting in the examination hall with mobile phones while attempting their question papers. No invigilator is seen in the examination hall in the viral video.

Following the circulation of the video, Begusarai District Education Officer Manoj Kumar said the headmistress had been issued a show-cause notice and her salary had been withheld.

"This is from Mokhtiyarpur. It is an upgraded secondary school. We also saw it yesterday. We immediately issued a notice to the HM and withheld her salary. An inquiry will be conducted and we are getting it done immediately. We will find out who was performing invigilation duty there and who was responsible," Manoj Kumar said.

He added that those responsible would be identified after the inquiry and action would be taken against them.HEADMISTRESS CITES SHORTAGE OF TEACHERS

School headmistress Lucy Kumari said there was a shortage of teachers as examinations for multiple classes were being held simultaneously.

She said exams for Classes 9, 10, 11 and 12 were underway, while only three teachers were working in the Plus Two section.

"There was a lot of crowd yesterday as the examinations for Classes 9, 10 and 11 were also going on. There was a shortage of teachers. It is possible that the teachers were busy elsewhere with paperwork, during which a student may have taken out a mobile phone," she said.

Lucy Kumari said students should not be allowed to carry mobile phones into the examination hall and admitted that a mistake had occurred.

"Teachers had been deputed, but there are only three teachers working in Plus Two and examinations were being held for four classes. The teachers may have been busy making attendance or with some paperwork, and this happened during that time," she said.

She added that the school was responsible for the lapse and assured that it would not happen again.

"We accept that there was a mistake. Taking a mobile phone into the examination and giving the exam is not right. If such a mistake has happened, it will not happen again. We will pay attention to this going forward," she said.