The Junior School Certificate and Junior Dakhil Certificate exams slated for Nov 10, 11 and 12 have been postponed due to a 72-hour countrywide general strike called by the opposition.
Published : 08 Nov 2013, 04:44 PM
The strike announcement came a day after Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid requested the BNP-led 18-party opposition coalition not to hold students ‘hostage’ to strikes.
Inter Education Board Coordination Sub-committee Chairman Prof Taslima Begum confirmed the postponement. She said the fresh dates would be announced on Saturday.
“We are behind schedule even if we take exams set for the three days on the two weekends. The exams will be rescheduled after consulting the minister and secretary.”
Authorities had to reschedule the JSC and JDC exams scheduled for Nov 4 and 6 due to a similar opposition strike.
On Thursday, the day the JSC and equivalent exams began, Nahid was apparently angry as general strike had forced him to defer the first JSC exam.
He described the strike as “a force destructive to the economy and public life”.
He said the opposition’s last countrywide general strike had affected the lives of country’s 40 million students.
He said the opposition’s indifference to the students’ sufferings was “painful”, and added that the opposition’s craving for power had made them oblivious of the students’ plight.
As many as 19,02,746 students are taking part in the JSC and Junior Dakhil Certificate examinations. The Nov 4 exams were re-scheduled to Nov 8, while the Nov 6 exams will now be held on Nov 9 instead.