The Andhra Pradesh government on Wednesday confirmed in the Supreme Court that it will go ahead and hold exams for Classes 11 and 12 (Intermediate first and second year) students as there is no “reliable alternative”.
The State said it was “conscious of the difficult situation, but conduct of examination shall be in the best interests of the students and shall be conducted safely”.
The Supreme Court had given the State 24 hours to take a call on whether or not it would conduct the State Board exams amid the pandemic. The CBSE, the ICSE and many States had cancelled their exams. “Even if there is one student fatality, the State will be held responsible,” Justices A.M. Khanwilkar and Dinesh Maheshwari had warned the State government on Tuesday.
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Sharp decline in cases
However, the State, in its affidavit filed through advocate Mahfooz A. Nazki on Wednesday, said the COVID-19 cases had seen a sharp decline from 19,981 on May 22 to 4,169 on June 22. It said it would tentatively conduct the exams in the last week of July. The timetable would be intimated to parents and students 15 days in advance.
It said there was no “reliable alternative” to assess the performance of the students.
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Unlike the CBSE and other Boards, the Andhra system gives grades in Class 10 and not marks. The State Board had no reliable check on the internal exams conducted in various schools. The Common Entrance Test for professional courses in the State gives 25% weightage to marks scored in Intermediate.
Precautionary measures
The State said it had prepared elaborate precautionary measures. Exam officials would be vaccinated. Each hall would allow only 15 to 18 candidates. The exams for Classes 11 and 12 would be held on alternative days.
The court scheduled a hearing on June 24.