Lokesh urges Jagan to cancel SSC, Inter exams in view of Covid surge

VIJAYAWADA: TDP MLC and party’s national general secretary Nara Lokesh Sunday urged Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy to cancel the SSC and intermediate first year examinations and postpone the Intermediate second year exams in view of the spread of Covid-19 cases in the State.

In a letter written to the Chief Minister, the TDP MLC said India and Andhra Pradesh are in the middle of a second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. “Our State is reporting 3,000 new cases daily on  an average in the past one week. Though this is 30 per cent of our peak recorded last year, our neighbouring states Telangana and Tamil Nadu are close to touching their peaks from last year. Before there is further spread across the borders, we must take sufficient precautions to keep Covid-19 transmission under control,’’ Lokesh said.

Lokesh said as on April 13, the State has managed to provide only 7,270 doses of vaccine per 1 lakh people in AP. “With more than 10 States above us in this crucial parameter, our government must take preventive measures until it ramps up its vaccination drive. I appeal to  the government to scrap the final exams for our students in SSC and Intermediate classes,’’ Lokesh said adding the CBSE has already cancelled exams for class 10. Lokesh also pointed out that Telangana State too cancelled its SSC and Inter first-year exams. 

“More than 15 lakh of our students will be writing these exams in May and June, which is a huge risk under the shadow of a fast-spreading second wave. Instead of a wait and watch policy, AP must set an example in prioritising the health of its students and society above all else,’’ he said. Lokesh said students have already been subjected to an unprecedented set of pressure, studying and suffering under the shadow of a deadly pandemic. “We must not further push them into a risk,” he said.