Class 10 Secondary School Certificate (SSC) board and Class 12 Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) board examinations have been postponed by the Maharashtra state government, announced Varsha Gaikwad, state school education minister on Monday. This decision was taken due to rising Covid-19 cases in the state after a meeting with the Chief Minister (CM) Uddhav Thackeray.
On Monday, Gaikwad said, "Given the current Covid-19 situation in Maharashtra, we have postponed state board exams for Class 10 (SSC) and Class 12 (HSC). The present circumstances are not conducive for holding exams. The health of students is our priority."
The state government has decided that Class 12 HSC board exams will be conducted by end of May, while Class 10 SSC board exams will be conducted in June via offline mode. Gaikwad said, "Keeping in mind the schedule of entrance exams for professional courses, Class 12 exams will be held by end of May, while Class 10 exams will be in June. We're closely monitoring the health situation. Fresh dates for these exams will be announced accordingly."
In addition, Gaikwad said, "We will also be writing to the CBSE, ICSE, IB and Cambridge boards, requesting them to reconsider their exams dates."
The decision to postpone SSC and HSNC examinations was taken after consultations with various stakeholders-students, teachers, parents, elected representatives from across parties, academicians and tech giants in the wake of rising coronavirus cases. Gaikwad said, "During the consultations, various alternative assessment options were evaluated keeping the health, well-being and future of our students in mind. Postponing exams seemed to be the most pragmatic solution."
Class 12 HSC board theory exams were scheduled to be conducted from April 23 to May 21 and SSC board exams from April 29 to May 20, 2021 via offline mode.
