The Supreme Court on Friday, September 17, dismissed a plea challenging the Kerala government's decision to hold physical examinations for class 11 students. A bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar and CT Ravikumar said that a detailed affidavit has been filed by the state government, and said that they are taking all measures to ensure COVID-19 safety protocol is followed.
The bench said that a holistic approach has to be taken in the matter and the authorities are conscious of their duties. "We are convinced by the explanation offered by the state and trust authorities will take all precautions and necessary steps so that no untoward situation is faced by students who are of tender age and appearing for the proposed examination," the bench said. The Supreme Court said it had intervened on the earlier occasion as there was a possibility of a third wave of corona by September. However, the bench observed that this “is not in the offing immediately”.
In its affidavit, the Kerala government had told the Supreme Court that online examinations will be a disadvantage for students with no access to laptops and mobile phones. The conduct of examinations through online mode will prejudice a large number of students who have no access to laptops, desktops or even mobile phones, it said. "In many areas, internet connection or mobile data are not available. These students will never be able to write online examinations," the state government had told the court.
The Supreme Court had on September 3 stayed for a week Kerala government's decision to conduct offline exams for class 9, commencing from September 6 amid the rising cases of COVID-19, saying "there is an alarming situation in the state". The court had observed that "cases in Kerala are about 70% cases of the country and children of this age cannot be exposed to this risk".