Over four years ago,the Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board (GSHSEB) had planned to give an identity number to each of its students,for which the latter was required to fill up a Cumulative Record Form (CRC) every year. But the plan could not be executed properly. Now,the Board has set up a committee to work out a system by which the students from Class VIII to XII can be given unique identity numbers. The Board,in a bid to keep track of the students record,is finalising the blueprint of this project. According to the project guidelines,every student will have to furnish details on their education and family background in a form. This information will be updated every year till the student completes Class XII. The software incorporating the whole process will be available with the GSHSEB. This is being done so as to go paperless and to have a complete education history of every student at the click of a button. There are a lot of issues we come across like schools having ghost students,cheating during board examinations and misuse of privileges given to the physically challenged students. The comprehensive details about students can help the Board solve many of these problems, said H K Patel,Deputy Chairman of GSHSEB. The data bank will include information about the schools the students attended and the marks they secured in every examination since Class VIII besides other details. However,many school principals said the students have been filling up CRC forms every year for the same purpose. For the last four to five years,the students fill up CRC forms which have around 70 to 90 questions. These questions pertain to not just the students education and family,but also about their height and weight, said H Patel,principal of a city-based school. He added that while several schools send the completed forms to the Board,some neither collect the filled forms from the students nor send them forward. District Education Officer R K Patel said that a similar project was started a few years ago and students had filled up forms. But it is necessary that such identity numbers are provided so as to keep a check over the students and schools, he added. While none of the top officials at the Education Department are aware of the earlier project,Hasmukh Adhia,the Principal Secretary and in-charge GSHSEB Chairman,said: I am not aware what happened four years ago,but we are finalising the details of the UID. Once the details about the students are collected and stored by the Education Department,it can be utilised whenever needed,even after the student completes his schooling.
