Thousands of schoolchildren participated in annual examination for the Class XII in Kashmir Valley on Monday, the first exhibition of massive participation in a collective Government-backed activity across the Valley in more than four months of unrest. Officials said that more than 95 per cent students took part in the examination in an incident-free atmosphere. The authorities had put in place elaborate security arrangements to thwart any attempt by miscreants to sabotage the conduct of examinations.
They said that out of a total number of 31,964 students who were scheduled to appear in the examinations, 30,213 students wrote their papers at around 484 centres across the Valley. The examination was held amid initial resentment from the students and teachers who were demanding postponement of exams till March next year because the educational institutions remained shut across the Valley for the past four months. The authorities reduced syllabus by 50 percent for the students who were willing to write their exams during November.
Officials informed that the highest number of participation of students was witnessed in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district. “At least 96 per cent of class 12 students appeared in the examination in Anantnag. In Srinagar district, more than 94 per cent students appeared in the examinations,” they said.
Officials of the Board of School Education (BOSE), which conducts the examinations at the secondary level classes, said that all arrangements had been put in place for the smooth conduct of examinations.
The examinations for the class X will be held from Tuesday. As many as 550 exam centres have been established for 55,000 candidates for class 10th examination. The Board officials said that 98 per cent students have taken their admit cards.