NEW DELHI, 1 March 2022: As per a recent circular issued by the Delhi Director of Education (DoE) to all schools in Delhi, Class 10 and 12 board examinations will be held offline for the academic year 2022. The DoE has decided that Class 9 and 11 would operate in hybrid mode (offline as well as online) until 31 March 2022; however, schools have to carry out offline exams for students belonging to classes 10 and 12. The notice also states that parental consent from students in board classes will no longer be required.
“Consent of parents for attending offline classes/exams will not be mandatory for students of classes X and XII. Schools may also deploy transportation facilities for the convenience of students and parents with Covid-appropriate behavior as notified from time to time,” the notice reads.
What is the Reason for Conducting Offline Board Examinations in Delhi?
Manish Sisodia, the Capital’s Deputy Chief Minister, announced that 95 per cent of Government school pupils and about 50 per cent of pupils enrolled in private schools have received their first dose of COVID-19 vaccination.
While the Central government had earlier chosen to remove the requirement for parental agreement for pupils to physically attend school out of its instructions, the Delhi government had previously opted to keep it in place.
However, seeing that the pandemic has somewhat stabilized, the state government has also decided that Class 10 and 12 students will now be required to physically appear for examinations in all schools in Delhi. Authorities from the Department of Education (DoE) also stated that parental authorisation will not be required for students appearing for board examinations.
Board Examinations in India – Recent Happenings
Students from all boards, including CBSE, CISCE, Madhya Pradesh board, Odisha board, Maharashtra board, and several other state boards, have all been protesting on social media platforms against the decision to administer the board examination for the academic year 2022 via the offline mode.
They have collectively requested for the 2022 board examination to be cancelled. However, the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal for the 2022 offline board examination cancellation, stating that it cannot interfere with policy matters and that “[all] authorities may take decisions independently”.
