SSLC exams begin today at 2879 centres across Karnataka amid coronavirus pandemic

Police personnel, healthcare workers and members of scouts and guides thermal screened the examinees, sanitised their hands and kept masks ready for disbursing.
Students undergo thermal screening at an exam centre in Belgavi. (Photo | Ashishkrishna HP, EPS)
Students undergo thermal screening at an exam centre in Belgavi. (Photo | Ashishkrishna HP, EPS)

BENGALURU: The big test for both the state government and the 8.48 lakh students writing the class 10 board SSLC examination, started on Thursday.

Students across the state were seen queueing up in chalked out boxes, meant for social distancing, at the exam centres, as early as 7:30 am, while the exam is scheduled to begin at 10:30 AM.

More than a lakh officials are deputed for the smooth conduct of the exam. Police personnel, healthcare workers and members of scouts and guides thermal screened the examinees, sanitised their hands and kept masks ready for disbursing.

The state has 8,48,203 students who will write the examination that will be held till July 4 . The minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Suresh Kumar said that as many as nine students are in home quarantine and 10 are being treated for COVID 19 -- these students will not be attempting the papers this time, and will be given a chance later.

As many as 27 examination centres have been shifted out of containment zones across the state.

As a counter to the growing number of containment areas, the department has set up two examination centres in each taluk as back-up, in case any centre gets sealed off.

Separate rooms are to be allocated for symptomatic students and those from coming from containment zones.

Each classroom would have just 18-20 students this year (unlike 32 students per room in 2019) to facilitate distancing at the exam hall , primary and secondary education minister Suresh Kumar had said.


'Police personnel did not disperse parents after dropping examinees': Minister

It has been observed that in several examination centres, the police personnel had not dispersed the parents after dropping their children. "The police need to be active in getting the crowd dispersed. We had noticed in a few centres like Hogasandra where parents are waiting. They need to drop and move away from the area," says D Shashi Kumar, GS AM, Primary and Secondary education.
 

Interstate examinees: Students coming from Kerala, Maharashtra write exams in border centres
 
DDPI Chikkodi on Thursday morning said SSLC students coming from Maharashtra to give their board exam at Boragaom and Bedikihala centres were picked up at the border at 8 am and were brought to their exam centres on KSRTC buses after being checked up for body temperature and administering sanitizers.

At the exam centres, they were again subjected to health check-ups and were provided with N95 masks. They were given appropriate directions before being let into their examination halls

Kerala domicile students writing the SSLC Exam in Karnataka today, marked 100 percent attendance. State Transport facilities were arranged and all 367 students reached their exam centres at Dakshina Kannada, said department officials.

20 students stopped from writing exams in Gadag

Twenty SSLC students from Gadag district were stopped from attending the exams on Thursday as they turned primary contact of a Covid patient. All the students were staying at a Government Hostel in Lakshmeshwar of Gadag district where a student who had come from Vijayapura was tested positive for Covid on Wednesday night. The administration has taken swab samples of all 20 students and has sent for testing. The students will be allowed to attend the supplementary exams, said an administration member.

Social distancing boxes missing in Uttarahalli school

After extensive preparations, exam centre at Karnataka Public School at Uttarahalli found some of the social distancing boxes missing. The boxes that were marked out with powder on the muddy ground were wiped out by the  heavy spell of rain the previous night that lashed the city the previous night. Officials sprang to reamarking the boxes in time for the students.

150 buses ferry students esp from rural parts in Kolar

A total of 20,906 students will appear for the SSLC Examination,  in the 70 Examination Centres in Kolar District

The District Administration has operated a total of 150 buses including private buses particularly from the rural parts of the district.

Almost all centres saw a designated box marked for social distancing,, free masks were distributed in several schools to students who had no mask.  They were thermal scanned and hand sanitized before being allowed  into the exam hall. Deputy Commissioner of Kolar, Satyabhama and officials paid visits to schools in the morning.

338 out of district students choose centres in Mysuru

A total of 39,822 students are appearing for the exam in Mysuru district of which 338 students are from other districts who have chosen to face the examination in Mysuru, despite the COVID-19 scare.

The Department of Public Instruction officials has procured over 40,000 masks which were distributed to the students. Arrangements were made for 22 students from the containment areas in the district to write the exam in separate classrooms.

With public and organisations advised against assembling in groups outside the exam centre to distribute masks and sanitisers, unnecessary crowd was not seen outside the examination centres.

Help desk, police patrolling to ensure maximum safety at exam centres in Shivamogga

A total of 24,904 students and 610 repeaters will appear for the exam in two private examination centres in the city.

Traffic and police constables were strictly ordered not to let anyone near the examination centres. Police double-checked for social distancing violations near the centres. Section 144 of CrPC was imposed in 200 metres radius of the examination centers.

Traffic police were seen patrolling near exam centres. BEOs visited the exam centres as the exam started.

To ensure a peaceful environment for students writing the exam, the police ensured that the road in front of the exam centre (which is near the city market) was closed completely.

Among necessary precautions, help desks were set-up at the exam centre that helped students to the designated hall rooms and seats. Parents were strictly asked to vacate the surroundings of exam centres.

Students from rural areas were ferried to the exam centre by KSRTC buses, ensuring social distancing till they reached the halls.

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