The Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) on Thursday announced their decision to postpone all Indian Certificate of Secondary Education Examination (ICSE) and ISC 2020 (class 10 and 12 respectively) examinations scheduled to be conducted between March 19 and 31. This is in the wake of the rising number of COVID-19 cases across the country.
The ICSE 2020 examinations were scheduled to end on March 30 and the ISC 2020 examinations on March 31. The revised dates for the conduct of remaining papers will be notified in due course of time. The heads of schools are requested to ensure that all concerned candidates, teachers, and parents are informed immediately, said the Council in their press statement.
The Council's decision comes a day after the Union Human Resource Development Ministry asked the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and all are the boards to postpone ongoing exams for classes 10 and 12. All the exams including University exams, Joint Entrance Examination mains (JEE) mains and National Institute of Open Learning (NIOS) have also been asked to be postponed on Wednesday.
The CBSE has stated that rescheduled dates will be made known to the stakeholders by March 31 after reassessment of the situation.
Several states such as Karnataka, Kerala, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, have ordered the shutdown of schools and colleges after more COVID-19 cases came to light. The Ministry of Human Resource Development has asked education institutions to maintain regular communication to avoid anxiety among students, teachers and parents.
Several parents had written emails to the board and had taken to social media platforms raising concerns over the examinations and the COVID-19 outbreak. The ministry stated that while maintenance of the academic calendar and exam schedule is important, equally important is the safety and security of the students, teachers, and parents.