Intermediate students’ safety is our responsibility: Education Minister

“The future and safety of the students is the responsibility of the government,” Education Minister Adimulapu Suresh asserted on Friday.

Addressing the media on the Intermediate Public Examination (IPE) scheduled to start from May 5, Mr. Suresh underlined the need for conducting the examinations.

“If the examinations are canceled, the students will receive a mere pass certificate, which may deprive them of many good academic opportunities in the future,” the Minister reasoned.

Stating that he had gathered information from all the States in the country, Mr. Suresh said, “No State in the country has canceled the Intermediate examinations.”

The Minister lashed out at the opposition parties for “creating a fear psychosis in the minds of the students and their parents with regard to the examinations.”

“The Union government has asked the State governments to decide on the conduct of the examinations depending on the COVID-19 situation in their respective areas,” the Minister said, and adding, “At the moment, it may look like the government is taking a harsh stance on the issue. But it is for the good of the students.”

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Advice to parents

Asking the parents not to worry, Mr Suresh said, “I give you my word. Your children’s safety is paramount for us.”

The examination material was being sent to the 1,452 centres set up across the State, he said. “This year, 41 additional examination centres are being established,” he said.

COVID protocols

A COVID Control Centre was being established in the office of the Commissioner, Board of Intermediate Education (BIE), besides constitution of squads, special mobile parties and mobile medical vans, the Minister said.

“Thermal scanners, sanitisers and masks will be made available at the examination centres. Every centre will have an isolation room, where students showing COVID-19 symptoms will be allowed to write the examinations. The staff invigilating in these isolation rooms will be given PPE kits,” the Minister said.

Mr. Suresh said the hall tickets would be made available on the website – bie.ac.gov.in – from Thursday evening, and an app, ‘IPE Exam Centre Locator, had been designed and made available in the Google play store to help the students access information about their examination centres.

“Students who have contracted the virus and are not able to write the examination will have to produce a certificate to that effect. The BIE will conduct a separate examination for them at a later date,” the Minister said.

COURTESY – THE HINDU