34 Class X students fail as board marks them absent

GURGAON: In a row similar to that which led to Pinky Chauhan's self immolation at Government Girls' College in Gurgaon Sector 14 a month ago, students of a private school, who sat for Haryana Board's 10th standard exams this year, have all been marked absent in two optional papers - Sanskrit and Drawing.
A total of 129 students of DAV Senior Secondary School on Khandsa Road had appeared in the board exams this year.And, all 34 students, who sat for the two optional subjects, were marked absent and, as a result, they have failed in the board exams, triggering huge protests at the school on Friday.
Shockingly, out of 129 students, only 52 have managed to secure pass marks. The unsuccessful students include those who were marked absent in the two optional papers.
The school authorities have, however, shrugged off their responsibility and put all the blame on the Haryana Board. "The mistake didn't happen from the school's side but the Haryana Board is responsible for it. They marked absent all 10 students who appeared for Sanskrit exam and 24 students who sat for Drawing exam," school principal Subhash Adlakha told TOI. The school will soon write to the state board for rectification of the mistake, he added.
But, the students have alleged that it is the fault of the school which imparts poor quality of education. "We had appeared in sanskrit exam. How can they mark us absent across the board? They seem to be least concerned about our careers," said one student, on condition of anonymity. Another student added: "There are nearly 70 students in the two sections of Class X, and teachers often ask half the students to leave class for some reason. The school is to be blamed for the poor results." The students had earlier planned to block the main road in Gandhi Nagar area of Sector 11 on Friday, but called it off after assurance from local councillor Ravinder Kataria. "After he assured us prompt and appropriate action, we didn't block the road," a student said.
Kataria, councilor of ward number 20, said that he would soon have a meeting with the school management "to sort this out immediately".