Uncertainty looms over board exams in Telangana as COVID cases see upsurge

HYDERABAD: WITH educational institutions shut and Intermediate practical exams postponed in Telangana owing to the rising number of Covid-19 cases, students, parents, teachers and school managements are worried about the upcoming board exams. 

Will the boards be postponed, or will they be conducted as per schedule? If the boards are conducted as per schedule, how will students — particularly those with no access to e-education resources — attempt it without attending lessons? These are some of the pertinent questions raised by stakeholders. 

The State government has not yet issued any order indicating when the schools would reopen, and it is unlikely that it would, unless the decision is announced by the Chief Minister himself, said Director of School Education, A Sridevasena. “It is not known whether the exams will be conducted as per schedule or not. The Chief Minister will take a decision on the matter,” she said.     

School managements and teachers have approached the State government with an appeal to reopen the educational institutions. “Either the government must reopen institutions or promote every student without exams,” they said. 

“There is no improvement in the online mode of instruction. At this juncture, the government should not conduct the exams, because it will be unfair to the students,” said Madhusudhan Reddy, a lecturer and president of the State Junior Lecturers Association. 

Hours cut short

The spike in Covid cases and rise in mercury levels have prompted the School Education Department to run schools from 8 am to 12:30 pm for teachers and non-teaching staff from April 7