4.7 per cent absent on first day of Inter exams

Hyderabad: In what appears to be a matter of concern, a whopping 22,210 candidates were absent on the first day of Intermediate Public Examinations (IPE) that began on Friday.  While 4,64,756 students registered for the exams, only 4,42,546 were present on Friday. The rest of the candidates, 4.7 per cent of them, were absent.

According to the officials of Telangana Intermediate Board, last year only over 6 per cent of students were absent for the exams. The intermediate examinations are conducted from 9 am to 12 pm and will end on May 23.  The intermediate board exams for the first year students began on Friday and the second year students are writing the exams on Saturday.

As per norms, no student is permitted to enter the examination hall once the clock strikes 9 am. Students are allowed to enter the centre by 8.30 am. With over 22,000 being absent for the exam on the first day, officials do not have any information as to how many students were marked absent for coming late.

However, Dr P. Madhusudhan Reddy, president, Government Junior Lecturers’ Association said over 100 students all over Telangana were unable to write the exam as they reached late. He added that the invigilators who were deployed at various examination centres claimed to have no proper facilities of drinking water and had poor ventilation. “The invigilators at various centres informed me that drinking water was not supplied to the students and approximately 60 to 70 per cent of classrooms do not even have proper fans that are in working condition. Students are having a tough time due to poor ventilation,” he said.

Students struggled to reach the examination centres due to low frequency of city RTC buses in certain routes.  “We have to leave very early because buses are not on time. We have to wait for a long time till our bus arrives. Also, not all buses drop us near the centre, so even if the bus is 10 minutes late, we have to run to the centre to avoid missing the exam,” said a student.

Students who are experiencing anxiety or other related concerns can call 18005999333 to speak with a counsellor. Over 60 calls are made per day by the students to psychologists as they are in fear of writing exams and are stressed over their performance due to online classes conducted throughout the year.

Students are also worried about time management as they have lost the habit of writing and are seeking advice from psychologists. A psychologist, Tina Sharma, said, “Students have been directly asked to download their hall tickets online which do not have their concerned college stamp. Students are worried that they would not be allowed to write the exam if there is no college stamp on the hall ticket. They are also complaining about poor ventilation as fans are not working in many centres.”