Class 10 students who reside in places far away from examination centres will now be given the option to stay in hostels for the duration of the SSLC exam.
This decision has been taken by the Department of Primary and Secondary Education to help students, especially those who live in isolated settlements in the coastal and hilly areas of Karnataka.
S.R. Umashankar, Principal Secretary, Primary and Secondary Education, said, “Many students have to cross rivers and struggle to reach schools. With the onset of monsoon, it will be difficult for many of them to get to their exam centres. We have told the Deputy Directors of Public Instruction to collect information of students who will be affected and to ensure they are given accommodation and provided food. They must be housed in a hygienic environment,” he said.
This measure will not only reduce the time spent on commuting, but will also reduce the risk of exposure to the novel coronavirus. Department officials have been instructed to go the extra mile and decide on what help they can give to students at the local level. V. Sumangala, Director, Karnataka Secondary Education and Examination Board, said they have been asked to map and collect details of how each child will get to the exam centre.
No centres outside Karnataka
The department will not conduct SSLC exam in other States, though this idea had been proposed initially. Students who live in border towns in other States have requested the department for permission to stay home and come to the State to write their papers. “In States like Maharashtra, the students will come to the border and we will send buses to pick them up and bring them to the exam centre,” said Mr. Umashankar, adding that they would write to the Department of Health and Family Welfare to relax quarantine norms for such students.
The department has also approved the requests of 12,674 students seeking change in exam centres on returning to their home towns.
