Daijiworld Media Network – Panaji (SD)

Panaji, May 21: The Goa Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education conducted the first of three remaining subjects for Class XII on Wednesday, May 20. Exam centers at Panaji and Vasco witnessed shortage of thermal screening even though the number of students to have appeared for the exam stands to be 3,818 and students entered the exam halls without getting screened. Later, students were screened after they were seated in the exam halls.

Goa Board chairman, Ramakrishna Sawant accepted that there was shortage in screening machines. He said, "There was a slight shortage. But we managed to arrange thermal screening machines and all 3,818 students, who appeared for the exam, were screened."

Two more subjects are remaining for the Class XII students appearing for the board exams which would end on May 22. However, the question arising is that the Class X board exams are set to be held on May 23, and 19,680 students would be appearing for the exams and how would the state handle the thermal screening machine shortage for such a big number when it fell short for only 3,818 students.

The state was granted permission to conduct the board exams by the union home ministry on conditional basis that thermal screening would be made available at all exam centers, having failed, on the same day the state government was produced before the high court of Bombay at Goa.

Apart from the shortage of thermal screening machines, the exam on Wednesday was conducted very smoothly. All the teachers, employees and volunteers cooperated and ensured social distancing, and other provision as sanitizers were availed to the students in the classrooms and the parents were kept at 200 meters away from the exam halls.