JK Board exams not to be postponed, 50 per cent cut in Syllabus
Jammu Tawi, Oct 03: Amid demands for postponement of annual board examinations in the wake of the prolonged unrest in Kashmir, the authorities on Thursday said they would go ahead with the exams as per schedule but decided that students would have to only attempt 50 per cent of the total questions.
Examinations have already been postponed by a month. But now they are scheduled to begin from November 14. The dates have been chosen on a number of reasons but the main reason is to save the academic career of the students, Chairman, Jammu and Kashmir Board of School Education (JKBOSE), Zahoor Ahamd Chatt told reporters in Srinagar.
He said the exams cannot be postponed further to March session as the students have to prepare for the competitive examinations.
Chatt said the Board has also approached the security apparatus of the state for conducting hassle-free examinations.
The JKBOSE chairman said the question papers have been redesigned to provide 50 per cent relaxation to the candidates appearing in class 10 and class 12 examinations.
The decision was taken keeping in view the interests of the students as well as the difficulties which they face, he said.
“We are now asking the students to attempt any five questions out of 10. In nutshell, anybody who has covered 50 per cent of the syllabus will be in a position to attempt 100 per cent marks,” the official said.
He said for language papers, the students would also have to attempt any 50 marks out of the 100.
The JKBOSE chairman said the timing of the examination has been preponed by two hours and would now start at 11 AM.
Chatt said those students who have been injured in the current unrest can approach the JKBOSE and they would be provided a helper to write on their behalf in the examination.
Claiming that it took a lot of time to redesign the examination papers, he said the questions papers have been redesigned after they were set as according to the normal pattern which consists of four sections long answer type, short answer type, very short answer type and multiple choice questions.
“But now we have decided to give students open choice as against internal choice and allow them to attempt any 50 percent from every section except language papers like English, Urdu, Hindi and others wherein we are allowing them to attempt any 50 percent among all questions as in these papers as there are no sections,” Chatt said.
Responding to a question, Chatt said that BOSE has received information that no student has been languishing in the jails. “We don't have such reports. No youth who is supposed to appear in the Class 10 and 12 is in the jail,” he claimed.
He also said that injured students can take help from a helper which BOSE will provide them readily.
He also ensured foolproof security to students and examination staff and appealed students to concentrate on studies. “There is no chance of postponement of exams,” he added.
About the relocation of examination centres, Chatt said only one centre has been relocated as the school has been occupied by security forces.
There are three schools which have been occupied by troops. We have received communication from one school and we have relocated the centre from there, he said.
In case we receive a relocation request from other two schools, we will relocate them as well, he said, adding no private school has been designated as an examination centre this year.
Meanwhile, Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) appealed for postponement of annual board examinations till March next year, saying “slashing down of syllabus is futile as it will only harm the interests of the students in the long run”.
