CUTTACK: The state has recorded a pass percentage of 77.35 in the matriculation examination this year, against last year's 86.37.The significant drop of nine per cent in the pass percentage is a matter of concern as the state has been recording an improvement in it for the past five years. In 2013, the state recorded a pass percentage of 75.99 and, in 2017, the figure was 86.37.While announcing the results at the office of the Board of Secondary Education, which conducts the examination, school and mass education minister Badri Narayan Patra expressed happiness over the performance of students and attributed the drop in the pass percentage to reforms."For the first time this year, students were not allowed to appear for the examination in their own schools. They were allotted different examination centres. The move helped to check malpractice, resulting in a drop in the pass percentage," said Patra. "We had strengthened the squads deployed to check malpractice. A five-tier security system was put in place to check cheating. This year, the examination was completely free from malpractice," he added.

Stay updated with all the Latest Cuttack headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.