Following the protests, state School Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad had said that the Board will introduce more student-friendly measures, although it was reiterated that the examinations would be held offline. (File) The Maharashtra State Board Of Secondary And Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) is contemplating to launch a new helpline to address issues raised during the recent student protests, sources said.
On Monday, over 1,000 students protested in Dharavi against the MSBSHSE’s plan to conduct the board examinations next month in the offline mode. Protesting students had complained that it was difficult for them to take offline exams, when classes were primarily being held in the online mode. They had demanded that the exams be either cancelled or held online. Following the protests, state School Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad had said that the Board will introduce more student-friendly measures, although it was reiterated that the examinations would be held offline.
An official from the school education department said, “We already have two helplines. One helpline addresses technical queries pertaining to the exams, whereas the other helps students deal with stress. Discussions have started on whether we should deploy more manpower to run the existing helplines or if we should set up a completely separate helpline to address the new issues.” He added that a final decision will be taken after the Board officials meet with the school education minister.
Notably, students purportedly influenced by social media influencer Vikas Fhatak, popularly known as Hindustani Bhau, had staged a demonstration near the Dharavi residence of the school education minister on Monday demanding cancellation of offline Board examinations. Similar protests were also held in other parts of the state.
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