Union Education Minister Takes Action to Enhance CBSE Payment Systems
Strengthening CBSE's Payment Gateway
New Delhi: On Tuesday, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan engaged in comprehensive discussions with high-ranking officials from four public sector banks to revamp the payment gateway system of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE).
Representatives from the State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, and Indian Bank participated in this crucial meeting, as noted in an official statement.
This initiative arises in response to the recent technical and payment challenges encountered by students during the CBSE's post-result and re-evaluation phases.
The minister emphasized the importance of creating a robust, dependable, and student-friendly digital payment framework, especially for post-examination services like re-evaluation and obtaining photocopies of answer sheets.
He instructed the banks to aid CBSE in establishing strong payment protocols to guarantee timely transactions, swift resolution of payment issues, and automatic refunds for any excess or failed payments.
The banks were tasked with collaborating closely with CBSE to enhance the payment gateway infrastructure, incorporating advanced technical safeguards, real-time monitoring, and expedited grievance resolution mechanisms, according to the statement.
Pradhan urged the officials to prioritize this initiative to prevent future technical difficulties or payment failures for students, advocating for seamless, secure, and efficient digital transactions.
The four banks expressed their commitment to providing full support and implementing improved protocols and technical enhancements promptly, in coordination with CBSE.
On May 24, Pradhan had previously met with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to address the payment and technical challenges faced by students during the CBSE's post-result and re-evaluation processes.
During that meeting, it was agreed that the four public sector banks would assist CBSE in fortifying its payment gateway infrastructure and integrating it with the post-examination portal, as stated by the education ministry.
Pradhan also directed that teams of professors and technical experts from IIT-Madras and IIT-Kanpur be assigned to investigate all reported technical issues since the introduction of this year's re-evaluation services, ensuring a smooth process for CBSE.
In related news, IIT-Madras Director V Kamakoti announced that a four-member team from both IIT-Madras and IIT-Kanpur has commenced an investigation into the recent issues with the CBSE portal, including payment failures and concerns regarding answer sheet uploads. He noted that the CBSE portal has remained stable for over 72 hours.
The CBSE has initiated the re-evaluation and verification process for answer sheets following concerns raised by students and parents regarding the On-Screen Marking (OSM) system.