The Puducherry government on June 7 cancelled the Class 12 exams, in view of COVID-19. Tamil Nadu took the decision to cancel the exams on Saturday. Puducherry joins other states like Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra which have already cancelled Class 12 exams. The announcement regarding the cancellation of the exams was made by Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy. However, there is no clarity on how the students would be evaluated. A decision in this regard will be announced soon. 

Along with Puducherry, the state of West Bengal also cancelled the Class 10 and 12 exams. The West Bengal government had earlier formed an experts committee to evaluate the possibility of conducting the exams and evaluate papers under the prevailing COVID-19 crisis, and the committee was against the idea to conduct the exams. 

While several states and the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) have cancelled the Class 12 exams, states like Assam, Tripura, Jharkhand, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh have postponed the exams and are yet to take a decision.

According to reports, the Telangana State Board of Intermediate Education (TSBIE) which had postponed the second-year Intermediate students in March, is considering cancelling the exams. However, evaluating is going to be a huge challenge for the government, as it does not have internal assessment unlike the CBSE.

Disregarding the criticism, the Andhra Pradesh government is firm on conducting the Class 12 exams. The government is likely to hold the exams in July. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy had earlier said that the decision to conduct the examinations was taken keeping the interest of the students in mind. “A good result in the examinations will ensure a better future, and what is the use if the students get a mere pass certificate? It is very easy just to say we want to cancel the examinations, and it is very difficult to conduct the examinations. The teachers would have to remember that we have taken the decision to hold the examinations even in these times, only to ensure that the children will have a better future,’’ he had said.