Telangana may follow the Central Board of Secondary Examinations (CBSE) and cancel the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examinations (10th class) this year as well.
The exams are supposed to be conducted from May 17 to 28 with major subjects to be completed by May 22 as per the schedule of the government released on February 9.
Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao is likely to take the final decision on cancellation after the Nagarjunasagar by-poll to be held on April 17. The surge in COVID cases and the apprehensions of parents may force the Chief Minister to cancel the exams. About six lakh students are presently enrolled in 10th class.
Several parents and students have already appealed to the CM to cancel the SSC exams. In fact, a student started an online petition for the same a few days ago and it received the support of nearly 24,000 people so far.
The government had cancelled the exams last year as well and promoted all students taking their internal assessment marks into consideration. The exams were cancelled after repeated postponements due to challenges in the High Court citing COVID-9 cases. The challengers were questioning the government on the safety measures and the fear factor among teachers.
The cancellation proposal has been doing rounds for the last one week among the officials but they shied away from officially sharing it without taking the consent of the Chief Minister. Officials say the surge in COVID cases, particularly in schools and hostels had in fact forced the government to close them last month.
A senior official on condition of anonymity said the government was thinking of promoting 10th class students and also those pursuing Intermediate first-year but was committed to conduct 12th class (Intermediate second-year) exams even if they are delayed. This was to ensure that State students don’t lose out at the national level entrance exams and admissions in top institutions where 12th class marks matter.
Since the CBSE too had postponed the 12th class exams, the Telangana State Board of Intermediate Education (TS-BIE) will follow the same. Government has time till July to conduct the same and announce the results early. “So the 12th exams in Telangana will also be postponed definitely,” he said.
The Government Junior Lecturers Association (GJLA) president, Madhusudhan Reddy agreed that it would be very difficult to proceed with the present schedule.
