BSE Odisha 2025: Matric Exam Question Papers and Answer Sheets to Have Watermarks, Barcodes

The Board of Secondary Education (BSE) Odisha has introduced new security measures for the Class 10 Odisha Board Exam 2025 to prevent paper leaks. This decision comes after several incidents of exam paper leaks in 2024, which raised serious concerns about the credibility of the examination process.

Security Enhancements in Exam Papers

For the 2025 matriculation exams, BSE Odisha will implement advanced security features, including watermarks, barcodes, and encrypted security numbers on all question papers and answer sheets. Each paper will carry unique identifiers, making it easier to track and detect any unauthorised handling.

Exam Schedule

The official schedule for the Odisha Class 10 exams 2025 was announced on 14 November 2024. The exams will be conducted from 21 February to 6 March 2025, with a daily time slot of 9:00 am to 11:30 am. Both regular and ex-regular students will sit for a single question paper in one sitting each day.

Testing the Measures with OSSTET

To ensure the effectiveness of these security measures, BSE Odisha will first test them during the Odisha Secondary School Teachers Eligibility Test (OSSTET) on 17 January 2025. According to Srikant Tarai, President of BSE Odisha, the success of the OSSTET implementation will determine the final rollout of these measures in the matric exams.

The decision to introduce these security enhancements follows a series of paper leak incidents in 2024 that undermined the fairness of the examination process. The new measures aim to restore trust in the examination system and ensure a secure and transparent process for all students.