n In a crackdown on ‘dummy’ admissions, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Wednesday withdrew affiliation of 21 schools and downgraded six schools from senior secondary to secondary level, officials said. The move comes following a surprise inspection at the schools in Rajasthan and Delhi in September during which several lapses were found.

“The practice of dummy or non-attending admissions contradicts the core mission of school education, compromising students’ foundational growth. To address this issue, we are taking decisive action to combat the proliferation of dummy schools and send a clear message to all affiliated institutions to resist the lure of accepting dummy or non-attending admissions,”

CBSE Secretary Himanshu Gupta said.

He said the vital observations of the surprise inspection committees regarding the irregularities observed during the inspections were communicated as a report to the respective schools. “The replies submitted by the schools were examined in detail by the Board. Based on the inspection findings and supported by videographic evidence, affiliation of 21 schools was withdrawn and six schools were downgraded from senior secondary to secondary level,” Gupta added.

Of the 21 schools whose affiliation has been withdrawn, 16 are in Delhi while five of them are in Rajasthan’s coaching hubs, Kota and Sikar. Majority of the inspected schools were found to have violated the board’s affiliation by-laws by enrolling students beyond their actual attendance records, effectively creating ‘dummy’ enrollments.

Additionally, schools were found to be flouting infrastructural norms of the board,” Gupta said. The CBSE has taken cognisance of these serious violations and showcause notices are being issued to the defaulting schools. Legal action is also being contemplated against those found guilty of non-compliance,” he added. Scores of students preparing for engineering and medical entrance examinations prefer to take admission in dummy schools so that they can focus solely on their preparations for the competitive exams.

They do not attend classes and straightaway appear in the board exams. Aspirants also choose dummy schools, keeping in mind the quota in medical and engineering institutes available for students from certain states.

For example, candidates who have completed classes 11 and 12 in Delhi are considered for admission in medical colleges of the national capital under the Delhi state quota. Earlier this year, the CBSE cancelled the affiliation of 20 schools for enrolling dummy students and ineligible candidates.