The Uttar Pradesh Board has sent out answer sheets that have numbers on them and are stitched together with a unique seam for upcoming high school and intermediate Board exams in a move to check tampering of answer sheets and use of unfair means, IANS reported.

Officials said numbering of pages will do away with the possibility of answer sheets being replaced with identical-looking forged copies and the unique seam will help in identifying whether the sheets have been tampered with.

The UP Board examinations are scheduled to begin from February 22 this year.

Answer sheets have started reaching all the districts for the exams.

Officials said for the first time, numbering has been done on the inner pages of ‘A’ answer book (pages number 1, 2, 3…) too. This will eliminate the possibility of swapping internal pages. Besides, answer books stitched with thread have been arranged for all districts, so that pages cannot be changed by removing the stapler pin.

In UP, more than 55 lakh candidates have enrolled for the upcoming Board exam 2024. Out of which, 29 lakh candidates have registered for the Class X exam while close to 26 lakh have applied for the Class XII exam. Compared to the previous year's report, it shows a decline in the number of exam takers.