The Odisha government has announced the cancellation of the Class 12 board exams this year in view of the coronavirus pandemic. The decision was taken by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday.

Odisha Council of Higher Secondary Education had initially planned to conduct the 10+2 boards from May 18. However, the exams were postponed.

The decision to cancel the exams outright comes just days after the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) decided to cancel their Class 12 board exams for this year.

“In view of the health crisis in the state, the Chief Minister has called for the cancellation of the annual Class XII examinations conducted by the Council for Higher Education eeping in mind the safety of students, teachers and parents in the state,” tweeted the Chief Minister’s Office.

Moreover, Patnaik has directed that competent assessment of Class 12 students be done within the stipulated time frame on the advice of experts. If any student is not satisfied with the assessment, they can take the test at a later date when the pandemic situation improves.

The Odisha CHSE will soon issue the directives for Class 12 results based on internal assesments.

In the last few days, the governments of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Mizoram, Uttarakhand have scrapped the Class 12 board exams, while several states are likely to take a call on the issue soon.