SC questions Andhra Pradesh govt over holding Class 12 exam, how can it play with lives of students?
The Supreme Court on Thursday posed some serious questions to the Andhra Pradesh government for insisting on conducting Class 12 examination in physical mode "tentatively" in last week of July.
FollowNew Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday questioned Andhra Pradesh regarding its decision to hold Class XII examination “tentatively in July last week”. The top court sternly said that the state should have ‘a decision and concrete plan’. “How can it play with the lives of students?”, asked the Court.
The top court has warned the Andhra Pradesh government it will be held responsible "if there is even one fatality" as a result of holding in-session Class 12 exams next month. The court also said it "may order compensation amounting to Rs 1 crore" in the event of any deaths.
"If there is even one fatality we may order compensation amounting to Rs 1 crore... when other boards had cancelled, why (does) Andhra Pradesh want to show it is different?" a two-member bench of Justices AM Khanwilkar and Dinesh Maheshwari said on Thursday.
"There are states giving Rs 1 crore as compensation to families of those who died. We may keep this amount for Andhra Pradesh also," the court added.
"Other boards took a conscious decision based on the ground reality. There is a new variant - 'delta plus'. Nobody is clear how it will affect us... Who took the decision to hold these exams and what are the parameters on which the decision was taken?" the court asked.
"It is question of the health of everybody... not only about conducting exams. We are not convinced about your plan," it declared.
In the affidavit, the Andhra Pradesh government said that around 5.20 lakh students will appear for the board examination and there would be precautionary measures in place, including holding exams on alternate days and allowing only 15 to 18 students at one exam centre.
The SC also asked Andhra Pradesh government to produce by Friday all details about logistics, staff and safety protocols as it was not convinced by the state’s confidence to hold the examination.
The strong words from the court came on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking cancellation of Class 12 physical examinations in view of the Covid-19 situation. Several students had also intervened in the petition seeking cancellation.
Andhra Pradesh government has informed the court it will conduct a physical examination for the 12th standard in the state because there is no other alternative available.
It also said the state board has no control over internal marks given by the schools and the internal assessment policy may not be accurate for declaring results of the Class 12 students.
The Supreme Court will hear the matter tomorrow, June 25.
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