The Goa Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education will conduct the Class 10 and Class 12 board exams from April 24. While several states have opted for either cancellation or postponement of upcoming board exams, Goa is set to hold the final exams from April 24. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, on Wednesday April 14 said that the board will take all necessary steps while conducting the Class 10 and Class 12 exams including maintaining social distancing norms to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
Right now, we have not thought of cancelling any board exams. We will ensure that all measures (related to COVID-19 prevention) are taken when the students appear for their exams," Goa CM Pramod Sawant told news agency Press Trust of India.
The Goa education department has already allowed examinations of other classes to be held online after the fresh outbreak of COVID-19 in the state, he said.
In the wake of rising COVID-19 cases in Goa, the state education department has directed the higher secondary schools and junior colleges to hold examinations for Classes 9 and 11 in online mode. The department had earlier announced that examinations for students of Class 1 to 8 would be held online and they can appear for the test from home.
Mr Sawant noted that the board exams were held successfully in the state last year amid the pandemic by following all the necessary measures to prevent the spread of the virus.
Last year, as part of COVID-19 guidelines and to follow social distancing norms, only 11 students were allowed to sit in one examination hall, the minister added.
Meanwhile, opposition parties in Goa on Saturday demanded that Class 10 and 12 exams of the state board scheduled for April 24 be postponed or be held online.
