Team Herald
PANJIM: For the first time, students answering the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) exam, will be doing so wearing masks.
In order to ensure proper social distancing amongst students, Goa Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (GBSHSE) is working on increasing the examination centers, post which fresh seating arrangements of the candidates, would be released.
Following permission from the government, the Board has decided to conduct the SSC examination from May 21 to June 6, while the exams for the three remaining papers of the HSSC exam, would be held from May 20 to May 22.
On Thursday the Board issued a revised schedule for the SSC examination. There are 17,000-odd students registered to answer the SSC exams.
As per the set of guidelines issued, the Board has said that a student arriving 30 minutes late for the examination will be disqualified, and that candidates will not be allowed to leave the examination hall one hour from the commencement of the paper.
Speaking to Herald, Goa Board Chairman Ramakrishna Samant said that in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, all necessary precautions like compulsory wearing of masks by supervisors and students, proper social distancing, and sanitisation of the examination centers would be ensured.
“Currently, there are 29 main centers and several sub-centers. We are working on to increase the number of centers in order to maintain social distancing,” he said, adding that fresh seating arrangements for students would be released soon.
He also said that schools have been directed to ensure that all staff, apart from supervisors, including the non-teaching staff, should be made available for the smooth conduct of the examination as per the requirement.
“Also, schools will have to take the responsibility to provide drop and pick service for the students to the examination hall. Students can also come in their own private vehicles,” he explained.
The Board has decided to rope in volunteers to assist candidates to reach their respective blocks, as no parents would be permitted in the vicinity of 200 meters of the examination centres.
The Board has also decided to put in place a medical team at each sub centre and main centres, with provisions of glucose, small sealed water bottles, masks and sanitisers for the candidates.
REVISED SCHEDULE
– Class X exam to begin with pre-vocational subjects on May
21 and May 22
– First language paper on May 23
– Two-day gap for mathematics paper, exam on May 26
– Language paper II on May 27
– Language paper III on May 28
– History on May 29
– Geography on May 30
– Main examination to conclude with science paper on June 1
– Other vocational papers till June 6
– For HSSC, on May 20 students will answer Marathi, on May 21
political science, on May 22 geography
