Odisha cancels Plus II board examinations in view of COVID-19 situation

BHUBANESWAR: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday announced the cancellation of this year’s Plus II board examination conducted by the Council of Higher Secondary Education (CHSE) in view of the COVID-19 situation.

Stating that the life of students is more important than examinations, the Chief Minister said all stakeholders will have to face a lot of problems if they are conducted amidst the second wave of the pandemic.

The Chief Minister directed the CHSE to formulate well-defined objective criteria to evaluate the students after thorough consultations with experts. He said that if any student is not satisfied with such evaluation, he can appear in examinations to be conducted which will be announced by the CHSE after taking the situation into consideration.

He said that the decision to cancel the examinations was taken keeping in view the larger interest of the students. “First comes life, other things come thereafter,” he said, adding that society and civilisation will move forward if life is protected.

He also praised the students and their efforts and patience during such a challenging time.

The announcement to cancel the examination was made by the Chief Minister a day after minister of state for school and mass education Sameer Dash had a meeting with top officials to discuss all aspects of the issue.

Earlier this week, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) had cancelled the Class XII board exams. Several states including Gujarat, Karnataka and Maharashtra had also cancelled Class XII board examinations.