The government announced today that the CBSE Class 12 board exams have been postponed and the CBSE Class 10 board exams have been canceled, following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with top officials to address demands to cancel them due to the huge Covid spike across the region.
The Class 12 Board Exams, which were scheduled to take place from May 4 to June 14, have been postponed. The government stated that the results of the Class 10 board exam will be prepared “on the basis of objective criteria to be established by the Board.
In the midst of the deadly second outbreak of Covid infections, the decision was made. India reported 1,84,372 new coronavirus infections this morning, the largest single-day increase in the country’s history, with 1,027 deaths.
Arvind Kejriwal, the Delhi Chief Minister, and Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra have all urged the central government to cancel the exams and protect millions of students from contamination.
On Tuesday, Arvind Kejriwal, referring to the troubling increase in virus cases in Delhi, said: “Board exams will be taken by 6 lakh students in the district. A total of one lakh teachers will be on the job. Conducting board exams will result in the spread of coronavirus on a wide scale… alternative methods of evaluation should be considered. Online tests or internal assessments may be used to promote students. Exams for the board should be canceled.”
His Punjab counterpart, Amarinder Singh, requested that the exams be postponed this morning, signaling the second surge in several states.
“The operation of #CBSE exams must be reconsidered in light of the destructive Corona second wave. Before making major decisions, all parties must be briefed. On how many counts does (the government) intend to play with the future of India’s youth,” posted Mr Gandhi.
His sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said it would be “downright irresponsible” of boards like the CBSE to force students to sit for the exams in the circumstances. “Board exams should either be canceled, rescheduled or arranged in a manner that does not require the physical presence of children at crowded exam centers,” she wrote last week.
