Class XII examinations in West Bengal have been scheduled from April 2 to April 20 while for Class X students, the dates are between March 7 and March 16. The authorities informed on January 6 that there are no plans underway to reschedule these upcoming offline exams as of now because the dates are three to four months away and there is hope for the COVID-19 situation to improve by then.
As per a report by PTI, Chiranjib Bhattacharya, President, Council of Higher Secondary Education, informed that, “Conducting online exams is not feasible. A large number of students in the rural areas won’t be able to afford smartphones with high-speed Internet. We would like to hold the exams offline. There is no plan to change the schedule as of now.” He also expressed the council's hope when he stated that students this year will not have to struggle like those students who have struggled in the last two years.
Kalyanmoy Ganguly, President of West Bengal Board of Secondary Education, noted that it might not be right to speculate upon the mode in which the examinations will be conducted at so early a stage. “We won’t be thinking of any alternative evaluation criteria for the time being. Arrangements for holding offline tests are in full swing,” he said.
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In the year 2020, secondary examinations were held offline and last year, they were called off due to the second wave of COVID-19. An alternate method had to be derived by the authorities to ensure that students are evaluated. As far as Higher Secondary examinations are concerned, they began midway in 2020 but were called off as midway, the pandemic came down hard on the country. The board then came up with a formula with the help of which, marks were awarded to students. In the year 2021, no exams were held and authorities came up with different evaluation criteria for the students.
