CBSE 12th OSM System: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has explained the complete process followed under the newly introduced On-Screen Marking (OSM) system for Class 12 board examinations, amid concerns raised by some students over their marks after the declaration of results.
The board shared a detailed process flow chart describing how answer sheets are scanned, checked, evaluated and cross-verified digitally before final marks are prepared. CBSE said the system has been introduced to make evaluation more secure, transparent and precise. Actual evaluation work under the OSM system commenced from March 7, 2026.
Scanning, Dispatch To Regions, Set-Wise Allocation
According to the board, the process begins with the receipt and secrecy stage, where answer books are collected and coded by external experts to ensure anonymity of students. The answer sheets are then scanned using high-quality scanners.
After scanning, a first-level quality check is conducted by the agency team. If the scanned copy is found unsatisfactory, the answer book is scanned again. The scanned copies are then dispatched digitally to different regions, except the region where the exam was conducted, to maintain secrecy.
CBSE also stated that evaluation centres are provided secure access through whitelisted static IP systems to prevent unauthorised entry into the platform.
How Teachers Evaluate Answer Sheets Under OSM
Under the digital evaluation system, answer books are arranged set-wise and allotted to evaluators online. Teachers then check and award marks directly on the system instead of evaluating physical copies.
The board said another quality check is conducted by evaluators during the marking process. If any issue is noticed in the scanned answer book, evaluators can reject it with comments, after which corrective action is taken by CBSE before evaluation resumes.
Once evaluation is completed, answer sheets are cross-checked by Assistant Head Examiners (AHE) and Head Examiners (HE) to ensure accuracy and consistency in marking.
Training And Rollout Timeline
CBSE also shared details about the preparation and training process before implementation of OSM for the 2026 board exams.
The board conducted a dry run on January 20 and 21 in five schools involving around 100 teachers. Demonstration sessions and feedback collection began from February 9 onwards, where teachers were briefed about the system and suggestions were incorporated.
A nationwide webinar on OSM was conducted on February 13 and was attended by schools and teachers across the country. On February 15, teachers were given portal access to practise evaluation using previous years' answer books.
Actual evaluation work under the OSM system commenced from March 7, 2026.
CBSE has maintained that the On-Screen Marking system reduces chances of totalling and tabulation errors, improves consistency in marking and speeds up the result preparation process. However, after the Class 12 results were announced, several students and parents took to social media claiming that they had received lower-than-expected marks under the new evaluation system.
CBSE has maintained that the On-Screen Marking system reduces chances of totalling and tabulation errors, improves consistency in marking and speeds up the result preparation process. However, after the Class 12 results were announced, several students and parents took to social media claiming that they had received lower-than-expected marks under the new evaluation system.