Pune PAT Exam Leak: The credibility of Maharashtra's Periodic Assessment Test (PAT) among Stds II to VIII students has been breached following the leakage of three question papers on social media and online platforms prior to the commencement of the exams. The Marathi Std VII paper, set for Wednesday, and the mathematics Std VII and VIII papers, set for Thursday, were said to have been leaked on Tuesday.
The PAT, which tests the level of learning of students in earlier academic years, is administered in all government, aided, and unaided schools in the state. The three-day test will end on Friday.
The State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT), the body that conducts the PAT, filed an FIR with Vishrambaug police station on Wednesday evening. According to the TOI report, SCERT assistant education director Sangita Shinde reported the case against unknown administrators of the channels that posted the leaked material. Shinde stated that at least two to three such channels posted the question papers along with answers, and the material was removed soon after it was spotted.
Inspector Arun Ghodke informed TOI that a case has been filed under the provisions of the IT Act, and an investigation is going on. Police are following the IP addresses of the accused and have asked for more information from the video-sharing website. Ghodke further informed that police suspect private tuition classes teaching students for the PAT may be involved.
As per the report, SCERT had delivered the question papers to government schools through private couriers between July 17 and July 31. Besides the leak, state teachers also complained of poor distribution, print errors, and wrong sets of papers despite clear instructions from the education department.
The case now raises serious doubts over exam security and handling protocols in Maharashtra's school examination system.
