Priyanka hails govt's decision to cancel class 10 exams

Welcoming the decision of the cancellation of class 10th CBSE board exams, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra demanded that class 12 exams should also be cancelled as keeping students under undue pressure until June will be unfair.

New Delhi: Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has welcomed the decision of the government to cancel the CBSE class 10 examination and demanded that the class 12 exam should also be cancelled.

"Glad the government has finally cancelled the 10th standard exams, however, a final decision MUST be taken for the 12th grade too. Keeping students under undue pressure until June makes no sense. It's unfair. I urge the government to decide now."

Earlier in the day, the Congress General Secretary had demanded the cancellation of the CBSE exams due to Covid resurgence.

"My appeal to the government again is to cancel the CBSE exams," Priyanka wrote in Hindi on Facebook.

Read:|CBSE cancels Class 10 board exams, postpones Class 12 exams

The demand came ahead of the Prime Minister's meeting with the education ministers of the states.

Earlier on April 11, she wrote a letter to Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, in which she said, "It will be practically impossible to ensure the safety of students at large and at crowded exam centres. Additionally, given the nature and the spread of the virus, it is not just the students who will be at risk, but also their teachers, invigilators and family members who are in contact with them. Aside from this, by forcing the children to sit for these exams during a raging pandemic, the Government and the CBSE board will be held responsible if any of the exam centres prove to be hotspots at which large numbers of children become infected with the disease.

"The responsibility to protect and guide the young lies with the political leaders. As state after state issues guidelines preventing the assembly of large numbers of people in public places, what moral grounds can we stand on, while forcing young children to do exactly that.

Read:|A great relief for students, parents: Kejriwal on board exams being cancelled, postponed

"It is not just the physical health of these children, but also their psychological well-being that can be deeply impacted. They already face the immense pressure of the exams; also, they will now be fearing the conditions in which they will be taking them," she wrote in the letter.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had also asked the Centre to reconsider its decision of holding the exams.

Manish Sisodia reacts:

On the other hand, Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi Manish Sisodia on Wednesday welcomed the Centre's decision to cancel Class 10 CBSE board exams and appealed that the same decision should be taken for Class 12 students as well.

"I am happy that Class 10 exams are being cancelled and dates are being rescheduled for class 12 exams. I know that Class 12 students will be anxious over the rescheduling," said Sisodia.

"Similar to what was done for Class 10 students, I appeal to the government to promote Class 12 students based on internal assessment and pre-board exams. It is very important to stay at homes during these troubled times," he added.

Read:|Priyanka urges govt to cancel CBSE exams

Amid the growing chorus for cancellation of CBSE board examinations due to the record spike in Covid-19 cases in India, the government earlier in the day decided to postpone the CBSE Class 12 board exams and cancel the Class 10 exams.

The decision was taken after a high-level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank said, "Any candidate who is not satisfied with the marks allocated to him or her on this basis will be allowed to sit in an exam as and when the conditions are conducive to hold the exams."

The minister also informed after the meeting that the board exams for Class 12, scheduled to be held from May 4 to June 14, have been postponed. The situation will be reviewed on June 1 by CBSE, and details will be shared subsequently. A notice of at least 15 days will be given before the start of the examinations.

Read:|Kejriwal asks Centre to cancel CBSE exams as COVID-19 cases surge