Maharashtra: MPSC exams postponed due to Covid surge to be held on 21 March
- The MPSC exams were earlier scheduled for 14 March but were postponed in view of the coronavirus surge in Maharashtra
The Maharashtra government announced on Friday that the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) exams will be conducted on 21 March. The exams were earlier scheduled for 14 March but were postponed amid a recent spurt in Covid-19 cases.
After the Uddhav Thackeray government announced the postponement of the MPSC exam only three days before it was to be held, angry candidates took to the streets in Pune to protest and demand that the examination be conducted as per schedule.
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This is the fourth time when the exam date has been postponed. The exams have earlier been postponed thrice due to various reasons such as the Covid-19 pandemic situation and the Maratha reservation issue.
The angry candidates argued that despite the Covid-19 protocols in place, all other entrance exams like NEET, JEE and even the Union Public Service Commission entrance exam have been conducted.
Mahesh Bade, one of the candidates, demanded a roll-back of the decision. "Is the government waiting for students to commit suicide?" he asked.
Another aspirant said the exam was first scheduled to take place in April last year, then it was postponed till October, then to March and now it has been again deferred.
"If they wanted to postpone, they should have done it 15 days ago. Now students have gone back to their respective centres across the state and they learn that exam would not take place," he said.
'MPSC exam will take place in a week's time'
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Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray had earlier said that the MPSC exams will take place in a week's time. "Last time when it (MPSC exams) was postponed, I'd assured you it won't be further postponed when next date is declared. Today it was postponed due to COVID. I assure you that postponement isn't for 2-3 months but for few days. Exam will take place in a week's time," CM Thackeray had said.
"Those engaged in exam duty must test negative for COVID-19. It's better that people engaged in the exam duty should be vaccinated first. No one should have any doubt in their mind examiners themselves are infected. We will declare the fresh date by tomorrow," the CM added.
"Don't want to play with students' emotions but don't want to play with their health either. This extra time which I'm seeking is only for better preparations for staff & other essentials. I appeal to students and parents to not lend a shoulder for any political gun," the CM further said.
Meanwhile, Maharashtra on Thursday recorded 14,317 new Covid-19 cases, the highest one-day spike this year, which took the state's caseload to 22,66,374. There are 1,06,070 active cases in the state.
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