Karnataka Exams Authority Moves to Digital Rural, Kannada Medium Certificates to Curb Frauds

The Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) has requested the Department of School Education and Literacy (DSEL) to issue rural and Kannada medium certificates in digital format for candidates appearing in the Common Entrance Test (CET) and other recruitment exams. The move aims to simplify document verification and prevent the use of fake certificates.

KEA conducts the CET for admission to professional courses like engineering, allocating seats to over 2.5 lakh students annually. It also handles NEET counselling for more than 50,000 medical seats, entrance tests for residential schools run by welfare departments, and recruitment exams for various government departments.

Candidates seeking reservation under the rural quota and Kannada medium quota must submit certificates proving they studied in rural areas from classes 1 to 10 and in Kannada medium. Currently, candidates obtain physical certificates attested by school headmasters and Block Education Officers (BEO), scan them, and upload them to the KEA portal. KEA then sends these documents for verification, during which fake certificates have been detected.

KEA already receives caste, income, and Aadhaar cards in digital form. From the current academic year, DSEL has started distributing mark sheets and transfer certificates (TCs) for SSLC and II PUC students digitally. Extending this to rural and Kannada medium certificates is expected to further curb malpractices.

Prasanna H., Executive Director of KEA, stated, 'Most documents for admissions and recruitments are now obtained digitally, which has effectively prevented fake certificates and eased verification. We have proposed that DSEL issue rural and Kannada medium certificates digitally. Once implemented, we will make necessary modifications to the KEA portal.'