Union Human Resources Development Ministry on Monday, June 22, is expected to take a decision on whether to postpone or cancel the CBSE board examination. Along with that, a decision on JEE Main (April) 2020 and NEET UG 2020 examination is also expected to be taken by the ministry,

Further Read: CBSE, ICSE July exams cancelled.

Earlier, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) had informed the Supreme Court that it will inform the court about its decision on whether to cancel or postpone the exam scheduled to be conducted from July 1 to July 15.

The court was hearing a petition from the parents of children of CBSE who had requested the board to not conduct the remaining examinations in light of an increasing number of COVID-19 cases throughout the country.

The petition had expressed concerns about the safety of lakhs of students and their families scheduled to appear for the 12th board exam throughout the country. The petition had asked the board to cancel the exam for the remaining subjects and to assess students based on the internal marks.

A few states including Maharashtra, Delhi and Odisha have also requested the ministry to cancel the board exams amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, reports New Indian Express. An official said to the outlet, “In such a scenario, the ministry too feels that the board examinations be cancelled and a final decision is likely to be announced by Monday.”

With regard to NEET UG 2020 and JEE Main 2020, the conducting agency NTA has not been able to come up with a decision on whether to postpone or cancel the exam, the report adds. Since lakhs of students’ future depend on these exams, it will be a difficult decision to cancel them.

The report suggests that several options are being considered including conducting the exams online or in a staggered manner to avoid crowding the centre. Previously some states have suggested to cancel the NEET UG exam this year and admission to be conducted based on 12th marks.

HRD Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal had conducted various review meetings with officials from NTA, CBSE, School Education and Literacy department, MHRD to look into the examination schedule and reopening of schools. He commented that the ministry’s priority has always been the safety and security of students and teachers.