HS students demand change in exam centre

MALDA, 11 MARCH: Demanding a change in the venue of examination, potential Higher Secondary examinees of the Nalagola Higher Secondary School in Malda locked their institution today. The agitators claimed they would not sit for the HS examination as the Pakuahat ANM Higher Secondary School at Bamongola block, which is their designated examination centre.

Today’s development was triggered by incidents during the recently concluded Madhyamik examination. It is learnt that the Pakuahat ANM HS School was also the Madhyamik examination centre for examinees of the NHSS. A section of the NHSS examinees allegedly wanted to obtain unfair means during the examination, which the invigilators had discouraged.

It is also learnt that the Pakuahat ANM HS School authority had appointed local youths to guard areas adjacent to the school premises so that outsiders could not create problems or help the examinees adopt unfair means.

The condition grew seriously antagonistic on the last day of the Madhyamik examination when many examinees allegedly wanted to copy some answers. The invigilators stopped it with an iron hand. Frustrated with not being allowed to cheat, a section of examinees damaged property line ceiling fans, benches m chairs, tables and black boards of the Pakuahat ANM HS School.

Noticing the ransacking, the Pakuahat, the Pakuahat ANM HS School headmaster had informed the matter to the locals, who intercepted the rampaging students at the local bus stand and roughed them up for damaging school property.

After returning home, the trouble makers informed the matter to the Nalagola School HS examinees, who blocked a local road on the issue yesterday and staged an agitation and locked school today demanding a change in the examination venue from the Pakuahat ANM HS School.

Acknowledging the turn of events, the Malda district inspector of schools Mr Chinmay Sarkar today said: “The HS examination authority at Bamongola block has been asked to sort out the problem. It is very difficult to change the venue as it was finalized by the HS council. The responsible officers are holding a meeting to find a way out of the problem. The officials may try to convince the agitating students to accept the examination venue finalized by the authorities”. SNS