The Government of Pakistan postponed all exams scheduled in April and May till 15 June. This includes O/A level exams, Board exams for grades 9, 10, 11 and 12, however, special permission is given to students appearing in A2 exams.
Federal education minister Shafqat Mahmood on Tuesday announced that no examinations will take place in the country until June 15, amid a surge in coronavirus cases and deaths. The O and A Level exams have been cancelled and pushed till October/November, he remarked, adding that no student will be promoted without exams this year. The decision means that the exams of grades 9, 10, 11 and 12 that were due to start at the end of May stand postponed further, Mahmood added.
National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC) also discussed the concerns of students who cannot wait till September to take their exams as their year will be wasted. The Federal Minister announced 'We are giving special permission to A2 students to take their exams and centres will be open for only them and they should ensure that no more than 50 students are present at a time', Mahmood added. 'Pakistan has around 20,000 A2 students.'
'We will continue analysing [the situation] and in mid-May or in the third week of May, we will analyse the disease and a decision will be made whether to further postpone exams or allow them to take place. This means that if exams are started after June 15, they could go into July and some part of August as well,' he announced. The minister said the cancelled exams of O, A and AS level would now take place in the October-November cycle, adding that for students who wanted to study in Pakistani universities, the government would ensure that admissions remained open till January so they did not face any problems.
Students across Pakistan have been protesting against the exams. Some said their courses were not complete, while others raised concerns over the rising coronavirus cases. They approached the high courts in Karachi, Islamabad, and Lahore but their petitions were dismissed.