Students graduating the TSLC can now opt for the science stream in the general category, higher secondary in technical category under the HSEB or diploma courses provided by the Council for the Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT).

Based on the recommendation of an expert team led by Tanka Nath Sharma, the Ministry on Monday decided to allow HSEB to commence Grade 11 classes starting this year. Following the directives from the Parliamentary Committee on Women, Children, Elderly citizen and Social Welfare on April 20, the MoE had formed a study which recommended authorising the HSEB to start technical education in higher secondary level.

As many as 3,256 students, including 1,246 girls, who took the SLC under technical category from 99 public schools passed the examinations. The students, who were enrolled in five different technical courses, took the examinations for the first time this year.

According to HSEB vice-chairman Chaitanya Sharma, his office will form committees for curriculum development and begin the process to grant affiliation simultaneously. He also stated that the committees will be formed within a week and a public notice will be issued to call for applications for affiliation. “We hope to start the new academic session by the second week of August,” he said. The HSEB will form five different subject committees in total for plant sciences, animal husbandry, computer engineering, software engineering and mechanical engineering.

Sharma said that the courses will focus more on the academic part but will not undermine the vocational section. Since the Board has already been offering courses in agriculture at high secondary level, there will be no problem in providing other technical courses, he added.

However, the CTEVT, which is against the move, has decided to challenge the decision in Supreme Court. It claims that the MoE breached the existing law which solely authorises the Council to offer technical education in intermediate level.

Ram Hari Lamichhane, member-secretary at CTEVT said that some MoE joint secretaries, under pressure from various quarters, took an illegal decision. The decision was made by acting secretary Lava Deo Awasthi in the absence of Secretary Bishwo Prakash Pandit. “We are in consultation with our lawyers. The decision will be challenged in the apex court in a couple of days,” he told the Post.

The CTEVT has been providing diploma courses in various subjects, which equals to an intermediate degree. Lamichhane claimed that there has to be three years of study under the technical category in the intermediate level. However, the HSEB can only run a two-year programme which will not be recognised abroad. The Council has already called for applications from the 99 schools if they wish to run higher education under its affiliation.