The West Bengal Board Madhyamik examination will be commenced from February 18, 2020. Representational Image/ file 

WBBSE Madhyamik exams 2020: After the ban on using mobile phones last year, the West Bengal Board of Secondary Examination (WBBSE) has refrained teachers from using smartphones this year. “The invigilators, teachers or any other staff member will not be allowed to enter the exam centres with any electronic gadgets, including the smartwatch,” the board official said.

The board president Kalyanmoy Ganguly told indianexpress.com, “Taking consent from all the teachers’ organisations, the board took this measures as these days, smartwatches can be used as smartphones. The steps were taken to conduct free and fair examination.”

The West Bengal Madhyamik examination will commence from February 18, 2020 and as is the norm, the board has taken measures to prevent incidents of malpractices. Meanwhile, only four appointed persons from the board — officer-in-charge, centre secretary, venue supervisor and additional venue supervisor — will be allowed to carry any sort of electronic gadgets inside the venue.

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According to the official, the board will keep an eye on all the members associated with the examination this year, as the incidents of paper leak last year marred the images of the state board. Last year, several incidents of paper leak were reported from various districts in the state.

The official also hinted that there may be a dip in the total number of students registered for the examination, as the pass percentage was quite high last year. “As the pass percentage in Madhyamik examinations went on increasing gradually, so less number of re-appeared candidates registered for the examination which affected the overall numbers,” the official said. A total of 85.49 per cent students cleared the examination successfully in 2019, recording the highest pass percentage ever.