Over 1 Lakh Students Want Board Exam Cancelled in 2021

students demand cancellation of off line board exams

Around one lakh students of classes 10 and 12 have signed petitions and urged the government to either cancel board exams or conduct them in online mode. The hashtag "cancelboardexams2021" has been trending on social media from last two days.

Moreover, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) both have cleared that adequate safety arrangements are being made for students and all COVID-19 protocols will be followed during the exams.

According to the sources, CBSE said that "Adequate arrangements are being made to ensure the students are safe and all COVID protocols are followed. The number of exam centres has been increased by 40-50 per cent to ensure social distancing. The staff at exam centres is being sensitised to ensure all guidelines are followed,".

Meanwhile, practical exams were conducted in the month of January and written exams began in February which come out with results in the month of March. However, the exams were delayed and rescheduled for May-June due to the pandemic. Last week, the board of education had announced that if any student fails to appear for ongoing practical exams after the student or any family member who is testing positive, then schools will conduct the re-tests for them at an appropriate time.

Similarly,the Chief Executive and Secretary at CISCE, Gerry Arathoon alleged that the schedule for exams "will remain the same". Schools across the country were closed in March last year to control the spread of COVID-19 ahead of a nationwide lockdown as well as for nation safety. Whereas some states reopened the schools partially from October in 2020, but online classes happened.

India registered a record 0f 24 hours on thursday, it rise of over 1,26,789 new COVID-19 cases, pushing its infection tally to 1,29,28,574, along with deaths over 500 while the number of cases too went upwards to breach the nine lakh, according to the data shared by Union Health Ministry.