The government has reaffirmed its decision to proceed with the HSC and equivalent exams, and this time, it has backed up this message with new, concrete protective measures for test takers. Examination centers of all testing boards, except for Chittagong, are ready to administer the tests, Dr. Mahdi Amin, advisor to the Prime Minister and spokesperson for his office, stated in a detailed statement Tuesday evening.
Protecting the interests of students, he emphasized, is the government’s top priority.
What the Review Found
According to the advisor, the Ministry of Education has been in constant contact with the Meteorological Department and the administration of each division, district, and upazila for days. On Tuesday morning, it consulted again with the divisional commissioners, deputy commissioners, police superintendents, and the presidents of all the education boards.
The opinion was unanimous: outside of the Chittagong board, there is a favorable environment for holding exams nationwide. The ongoing HSC and equivalent exams involve 1,270,583 candidates at 2,697 centers, while the five flood-affected districts under the Chittagong board’s jurisdiction—Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Rangamati, Bandarban, and Khagrachhari—remain suspended until July 16.
Two New Safeguards Every Student Should Know
The statement introduced two decisions that directly protect examinees.
First, local officials now have on-the-spot powers. If transport problems or waterlogging appear anywhere, the local administration can change a center, postpone an exam, or extend exam time — whatever the situation demands, without waiting for Dhaka.
Second, no student will lose a paper to the weather. If adverse weather prevents any student anywhere in the country from sitting an exam, they will be allowed to take that paper on the same day as the Chittagong board’s rescheduled exams. In short: miss a paper because of rain, and you still get your chance.
Full Marks Confirmed for the Faulty Physics Questions
The advisor also directly addressed the controversy surrounding Monday’s first Physics exam, referring to reports that two errors were found in the questions and noting that the decision to award the maximum mark to all students for those questions reflects a student-friendly policy.
This represents an improvement over the conditional language previously used by examination boards and is good news for the thousands of science students who lost sleep over questions 6 and 7.
The Cumilla Center, Explained
The advisor also offered the most comprehensive official explanation to date regarding Monday’s most criticized incident. A flash flood affected the Cumilla Government College for Girls center, temporarily disrupting the exams for 987 students. In a coordinated decision by the district administration, the police, the city council, and the examination board, the exam at that center was delayed by one hour to ensure its full duration. The remaining 192 centers in the Cumilla board conducted their exams without incident.
The statement was issued amidst criticism and student protests over holding exams in adverse weather conditions, a debate that is unlikely to end anytime soon. However, for candidates, the practical situation is now clearer: the exams are proceeding, local authorities can act immediately, and missed exams can be made up.
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