Daijiworld Media Network - Panaji

Panaji, Apr 16: An announcement was made by the Goa Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education that students who contract Covid-19 in the midst of their class XII board examination and are unable to answer the rest of their papers, will be permitted another attempt at a later date that will be treated as their first attempt. The announcement was made on Thursday April 15.

"It will be a special provision created for these students, allowing them to continue their examination in June or July. We wouldn't want the students to suffer," board chairman Bhagirath Shetye said, even as he maintained that the examination would continue as scheduled from April 24 amid strict SOPs, including thermal scanning, social distancing and wearing of face masks.

"There will be only 12 candidates in a classroom. If the classroom is bigger, we will increase the number ensuring a distance of two metres, but there won't be more than 20 students in one classroom. We have increased the number of centres to over 90. The exam will be conducted in 18 main centres, each of which has an average of five sub-centres," Shetye said.

Each of the 18 main examination centres will have isolation centres away from the main centres for students who are Covid positive and are able to write the exam. Students whose family members have contracted the virus will also write the exam in the isolation centres. Such students should inform their respective schools or email the board, Shetye said.