Calcutta University has sought technological support from the University Grants Commission (UGC) to develop a mechanism for producing marksheets that cannot be tampered with or duplicated.

?Thanks to a system we have already put in place, our marksheets are very difficult to replicate. Each document has a secret code that only people aware of the mechanism can find out. Still, we?ve sought the UGC?s help to eliminate all chances of duplication,? said controller of examinations Omkar Sadhan Adhikari.

This is the first time the university has written to the UGC, seeking specific support to tackle the problem of fake marksheets.

The move ? coming days after the CID unearthed a racket engaged in manufacturing fake marksheets of various universities ? has found support from police, who believe the institutions themselves would have to play a key role in tackling the problem.

?We will surely interact with the authorities of various universities and education boards to ensure that the security features on their marksheets are well-guarded and the documents are not duplicated. Police will do their bit, but it?s the institutions and education boards that will have to plug the loopholes,? said Soumen Mitra, deputy inspector-general, CID.

Sleuths probing the fake document scam believe classified information about the marksheets are passed on to the racket by university or board insiders.

Of the 14 arrested in connection with the scam, one is Lakshmi Sur, a clerk at the office of the district inspector of schools in Howrah. He was held along with two others in Barasat, on the northern fringes of the city, while they were waiting to hand over a fake Madhyamik marksheet to a buyer for Rs 7,000.