Maharashtra government postpones state board exams for class 10, 12 amid COVID-19 surge

In the last 24 hours, Maharashtra recorded 34,008 new Covid-19 cases and 349 deaths.

On Monday, April 12, Maharashtra Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad announced about postponing the state board examinations amid spike in COVID-19 cases, as according to her, postponing the exams is the most pragmatic solution.

Maharashtra Education Minister shared a video message on her official Twitter handle and said, “Imp Announcement: Given the current COVID-19 situation in Maharashtra, we’ve postponed state board exams for class 10th & 12th. The present circumstances are not conducive for holding exams. Your health is our priority.”

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“Keeping in mind the schedule of entrance exams for professional courses,class 12th exams will be held by end of May, while 10th standard exams will be in June. We’re closely monitoring the health situation. Fresh dates for these exams will be announced accordingly,” Gaikwad adds.

“The decision is the outcome of consultations with various stakeholders-students, teachers, parents, elected representatives from across parties, academicians & tech giants- in the wake of rising coronavirus cases. I also thank CM of Maharashtra for his guidance & approval,” Gaikwad further adds.

In a series of Tweets, Maha Education Minister Gaikwad further writes, “During the consultations, various alternative assessment options were evaluated keeping the health, well-being and future of our students in mind. Postponing exams seemed to be the most pragmatic solution.”

Gaikwad also tells that the state government will request other boards also, like CBSE, ICSE, IB, Cambridge boards to reconsider their exam dates.

Yesterday, on April 11, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray held a meeting with the Covid-19 taskforce in the state and all stakeholders were agreed on a “need for lockdown” in the state to contain the spread of Coronavirus infections.

Uddhav Thackeray will also hold another meeting today with state departments to discuss the imposition of lockdown in the state. The focus of today’s meeting is likely to be on standard operating procedures (SOPs) and guidelines for the lockdown.

In the last 24 hours, India reported 1,68,912 new COVID-19 cases and reached the milestone of highest single day surge