By PTI
AHMEDABAD: In view of the recent surge in coronavirus cases in Gujarat, the state government on Thursday decided to cancel the state board exams for Class 10 students and give them mass promotion to the next grade.
The decision to grant mass promotion to regular Class 10 (SSC) students of the Gujarat Secondary Education Board was taken by Chief Minister Vijay Rupani in the larger interest of pupils and save them from getting infected with coronavirus, said a government release.
A decision regarding “repeaters”, students who had failed in earlier attempts and were slated to again appear for exams this year, will be taken after assessing the situation once COVID-19 cases drop, said the release.
Notably, the state government has already granted mass promotion to the students of Classes 1 to 9 and also Class 11 in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has triggered a slew of restrictions on movement of people and non-essential activities in the state.
The state government had earlier announced to conduct board exams for Classes 10 and 12 between May 10 and 25.
When coronavirus cases suddenly started increasing in April, the government had indefinitely postponed the exams and said a fresh schedule will be announced in mid-May.
Now, the government has decided to altogether cancel the board exams for Class 10 and give mass promotion to the regular students.
As per a rough estimate, around 12 lakh students of Class 10 were expected to appear or the board exams this year.
A decision on holding Class 12 board exams is yet to be taken by the government.
