CBSE set to bar ‘dummy school’ students from Class 12 exams

Jaipur Students attending “dummy schools” — where pupils are enrolled on paper but skip regular classes to focus on private coaching for engineering and medical entrance examinations — will not be allowed to appear for Class 12 Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) board examinations from next year, officials said on Thursday.

The board is planning to amend its examination bye-laws to prohibit such students from appearing in the board exams, requiring them to take the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) exam instead.

The decision will hold significant bearing on Kota, India’s most prominent coaching hub, particularly for students preparing for prestigious engineering and medical entrance exams like JEE (Joint Entrance Examination) and NEET (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test).

Although there is no exact figure on the number of dummy schools running in Kota, a district official said on condition of anonymity that most of the around 150,000 students enrolled in various coaching centres in city were admitted to a dummy school. On November 6 last year, at least three schools in Kota were identified as dummy schools by CBSE and their registrations were cancelled.

The decision comes after the CBSE’s governing body, in its meeting held on December 26, 2024, approved the examination committee’s recommendation to bar students from board exams if they are found absent or non-attending during surprise inspections.

“The onus of not attending regular school also falls on the concerned student and his or her parents.... It is proposed that examination bye-laws be amended accordingly. Action against schools promoting the dummy culture or sponsoring non-attending candidates will be taken in accordance with the board’s affiliation and examination bye-laws,” the examination committee proposed in the meeting, with the action to be implemented from 2025-26 academic sessions, which was ratified by the board’s governing body, the highest decision-making authority of CBSE.

The examination committee reaffirmed that a minimum of 75% attendance is mandatory for CBSE board exam eligibility, adding that a 25% attendance relaxation is allowed only for valid reasons like medical emergencies or national or international sports participation.

The governing body also ratified the committee’s proposal that the board may not consider candidature of students sponsored by the dummy schools, and disciplinary action may also be taken against them if they refer such students to the board.

“Actions will be taken against schools violating our affiliation by-laws depending upon the degree of violations,” a senior CBSE official told HT on Thursday.

In January, a bench of chief justice D K Upadhyaya and justice Tushar Rao Gedela of the Delhi High Court called the dummy schools a “fraud” and directed the Delhi government and CBSE to take action against them.

The CBSE counsel had informed the court that action was taken against over 300 “dummy” schools across the country.

In November last year, CBSE withdrew its affiliation from 21 schools of Rajasthan and Delhi after the board in its series of surprise inspections in September found significant numbers of non-attending students of Classes 9 to 12 in these schools. The board also downgraded the affiliation of six schools in Delhi.

The dummy school system in Kota operates through formal arrangements between coaching institutes and affiliated schools. Students enrol in them to maintain their eligibility for board examinations while dedicating almost all their time to coaching classes.

“Dummy schools negatively impact the psychology of students and make them believe that one could game the system to climb the ladder of success... Attending school regularly is necessary for the social, emotional, and physical development of students,” said Professor BJ Rao, vice-chancellor of the University of Hyderabad,

An important consideration for students affected by this policy change is the difference between NIOS certification and conventional CBSE certification.

“NIOS allows students to complete schooling in distance mode, and conventional board schooling is regular mode, where students attend classes regularly in schools... The passing certificates of NIOS mention open schooling, whereas state board and CBSE passing certificates do not have any such mentions. Both NIOS and CBSE certifications can be used for getting admission in higher education,” said Jyoti Arora, principal of Mount Abu Public School, Delhi.

The NIOS, established in 1989, is recognised as an equivalent alternative to conventional boards. However, perception differences persist in certain educational institutions and employment sectors.

Parents of students currently enrolled in dummy schools have expressed concern about the mid-stream policy change.

MS Chauhan, director of the Kota-based coaching institute Vibrant Academy, said the decision might affect the students preparing for competitive exams. “We agree that the dummy institute culture should be curbed. But, why is there no advanced curriculum and teaching facility that aligns with the training being provided in coaching? This decision is completely against the interest of the students,” he said.

Sonia Kumari, an 18-year-old NEET aspirant studying in Kota, voiced apprehension over the proposed move. “How will we attend regular classes in school if we have coaching during the day? Balancing both this schedule seems difficult.”