Tamil Nadu TRB results: High target scorers allegedly got zero in descriptive paper, AIADMK seeks probe

The controversy over the Tamil Nadu Teachers Recruitment Board (TRB) recruitment exam for assistant teachers has intensified, with AIADMK calling for an independent and thorough investigation into the newly announced results.The TRB declared the results of the written examination on June 25 for the recruitment of 2,708 assistant teachers in government arts and science schools. In a statement issued on Sunday, AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami alleged that there were widespread irregularities in the assessment of the descriptive document.“Reports indicate that 42 candidates who scored exceptionally high in the objectives section were given a score of ‘0’ in the descriptive paper, while 106 candidates were given only ‘1’. In particular, a candidate from the Tamil department who scored 111 out of 150 in the objective test was given a zero in the essay section,” he said.It further claimed that some candidates who scored very low on the objective paper were awarded up to 49 out of 50 marks in the descriptive section, which significantly changed the final merit classification.Questioning the evaluation process, the former chief minister said, “This clearly reflects an inconsistent and biased evaluation process,” adding that it was difficult to understand how a candidate who scored more than 100 marks in the objective paper could receive zero in the descriptive section, or vice versa.He also alleged that mismanagement over the years had left more than 50 percent of the posts of assistant professors and several posts of principals vacant. He claimed that this had contributed to a drop in enrollment in higher education from 51.4% during the AIADMK government in 2019-20 to 47%.The party urged the Tamil Nadu government to immediately cancel the current TRB assistant teacher exam results and order a thorough independent inquiry into the alleged irregularities. He also demanded strict legal action against anyone found guilty of malpractice.The recruitment exam was held last December after a gap of almost 25 years. According to TRB sources, 42,064 candidates appeared for the test, which included an objective section of 150 marks and a descriptive essay paper of 50 marks.