Parliamentary Committee Notes Failure to Reach Even 25% of Skill Development Targets for Persons with Disabilities

Among the youth protesting in Ranchi and holding demonstrations for the past 20 days, one main question is being raised: if the government can cancel the 14th JPSC exams and delayed exams, why is it hesitant about canceling the JSSC-CGL exam?

Recently, government representative and minister Hemant Soren, Sudivya Kumar Sonu, held extensive negotiations with student delegations. The government claims to have met '98% of student demands,' but it has categorically refused to cancel the JSSC-CGL exam, which has caused the most resonance.

The government's main argument is legal in nature. Minister Sudivya Kumar Sonu stated that the JSSC-CGL exam was conducted under the supervision and in accordance with the directives of the Supreme and High Courts. In the government's view, the regional government does not have the right to unilaterally cancel an exam when the matter is under the oversight of higher courts. Cancellation without strong legal grounds would lead to judicial review proceedings.

The second argument is that the CGL exam process has already advanced significantly: results have been published, and many successful candidates have already started working in their appointed positions. In this situation, canceling the entire exam could lead to already selected candidates filing lawsuits, halting the entire process for years.

Students demand the complete cancellation of the CGL exam and an investigation into the matter by the CBI. However, the government took the opposite stance and rejected the request for a CBI investigation. Instead, the government proposed an inquiry through the CID and suggested creating a monitoring committee chaired by a 'retired judge.' The government added that if the CID investigation finds evidence of large financial transactions, it will approach the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for an investigation, but the exam will not be canceled under any circumstances.

Protesting students (JPSC-JSSC Nyay Manch candidates) completely reject the government's arguments. Leaders of the student movements claim that the government is spreading falsehoods about meeting 98% of the demands. In fact, out of 13 disputed exams, only three were canceled (the preliminary stage of the 14th JPSC and the delayed JPSC exams of 2023 and 2025). Students believe that since there is full evidence of material leakage and fraud by the TDPL agency, canceling the exam under the pretext of court action only protects the syndicate.

For hundreds of thousands of young people dreaming of becoming teachers in Bihar, graduates of B.Ed. and master's programs, this news is a significant relief. For months, the demands from applicants, voiced in Patna and on social media alike, boiled down to one thing: 'Conduct our STET before TRE-4!'

Ultimately, the Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) and the Department of Education responded to the persistent demands of the applicants. According to the latest information from the Chairman of the Bihar Council, Dr. Tyagradhan SM, preparations for conducting STET 2026 in the state have officially begun.

The Council has prepared a comprehensive plan for candidates awaiting teacher qualification in secondary and senior schools (grades 9 to 12). The Bihar Council plans to publish the official notification (gazette) for STET 2026 in newspapers and on its official portal on August 14.

Starting August 17, applicants will be able to complete online registration and submit applications on the Council's official website. This notification will detail all aspects concerning the proposed exam dates, subject syllabus, registration fees, and qualification requirements.

The issue is that the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC) is preparing to announce the fourth phase of the teacher recruitment competition, known as BPSC TRE-4.0. However, because the STET exam has not been conducted for the last year to year and a half, millions of new B.Ed. graduates were on the verge of being excluded from this hiring process.

The applicants' argument was very clear: if the TRE-4 notification is published without prior completion of STET, they will automatically be outside the race for teacher recruitment with no opportunity to correct mistakes. This led to constant petitions and the formation of protest plans across the state.

Following the statement by the Chairman of the Bihar Council, Dr. Tyagradhan SM, millions of young people who had spent months studying textbooks and participating in rallies in Gardanibagh rejoiced. This decision by the Department of Education demonstrates that the system is forced to make decisions, abandoning its inertia when youth demands are justified.

It now remains to be seen how quickly the Council will announce the exam dates after the application submission procedure is completed, so that all these applicants have the opportunity to participate in TRE-4.

Due to the lack of new textbooks, changes in the learning format, and a large volume of assignments based on practical application of knowledge, 10th and 12th-grade students may experience significant stress. According to the authors, the problem lies not with the students themselves, but with the educational system itself.

The Parliamentary Expenditure Assessment Committee presented its 10th report (for 2026-27) in Lok Sabha, raising serious questions regarding the negligence of the education system, NCERT, and CBSE. The Parliamentary Committee emphasized that millions of students are suffering from severe tension and confusion due to the shortage of books and the suddenly changed examination format.

The Committee found that although the curriculum for grades 9 through 12 was modified in accordance with the new National Education Policy (NEP 2020) and NCF 2023, NCERT has yet to publish the new textbooks. Students in schools are forced to study the new and more complex curriculum, which is oriented towards knowledge application, using old books. The Committee called upon the Ministry of Education to immediately address this gap and expedite the printing and nationwide distribution of the remaining new textbooks.

Although the council states that the exam format will be practical, teachers have not received adequate training for it. The report revealed a significant drop in the number of online training sessions for CBSE teachers. If online training reached over 5.3 million teachers in 2022, this figure dropped to only 1.62 million in 2025. Furthermore, while teachers in government schools receive free training, private school teachers in rural areas are forced to pay for training, and an additional fee of 700 rupees per student-teacher is charged. The Committee recommended immediately abolishing or reducing this fee.

The Parliamentary Committee also expressed concern about the fee structure and the decline in enrolled students. The Council reported that in 2025, 2.385 million students registered for 10th-grade exams, but this number dropped to 1.704 million by 12th grade, meaning millions of children are dropping out halfway. CBSE charges a fee of 1600 rupees for five subjects from all students, except those with low vision, and provides no concessions for children from economically vulnerable (EWS) and underprivileged sections. The Committee recommended exempting EWS children from examination fees.

Under the new National Education Policy (NEP 2020), it was promised that 6 percent of the country's GDP would be allocated to education. However, despite approaching the final stage of NEP, the total expenditure of central and state governments amounts to only 4.1% of GDP. The Committee recommended increasing the education budget by at least 10% annually to reach the target of 6%. An idea was also proposed to create a special fund whose resources should not lapse at the end of the fiscal year and could be used to strengthen digital and basic infrastructure. While educational strategies remain only on paper and textbooks continue to be absent locally, the fear of 'board exams' will never diminish in children in grades 10-12.