Staff Reporter :
Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid on Thursday said that all the coaching centres in the country would remain closed from today (Friday) ahead of the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and equivalent examinations.
The coaching centres will remain closed until the end of the examinations, he said.
The Ministry took the decision just a week before the SSC and its equivalent examinations scheduled for February 1, aiming to prevent question leakage.
The Education Minister disclosed this in a Press briefing in the Secretariat on Thursday.
Nurul Islam Nahid said that the SSC and equivalent examinations would be held with uniform question papers across the country this year.
“The decision has been taken in view of the complaints regarding varying quality of question papers and evaluation process under different boards,” he said.
The government has taken the decision to maintain the same quality of question papers and the evaluation system in all Boards.
SSC and equivalent examinations were held with similar question paper throughout the country for few years till 2014, Board sources said. Meanwhile, the Minister said that the students will have to enter and take seats in their respective centres 30 minutes before the beginning of the examinations. The envelope of the question papers will be torn before 30 minutes of the examinations.
“If anybody violates this instruction, officials will take instant action against the violators,” Nahid said.
Teachers and officers would not be allowed to carry any mobile phone in the examination halls. Only centre secretary can carry the normal phone set, not smart phone, the Minister said while talking to reporters.
Education Secretary Sohrab Hossain said, the specific examinations will be cancelled and fresh one will be taken if the authorities find evidence of question paper leak. “We have taken all kinds of measures to prevent question leak.”
Asked whether Facebook would remain closed during the examinations, the secretary said that the Ministry will inform the matter within one or two days after consultation with Facebook authorities regarding the social networking site block in Bangladesh.
During collection of the question papers from treasury office, executive magistrate, centre secretary and other officials concerned must be present.
Mobile court will be run during the SSC examinations, the secretary said adding that suspicious transaction through bKash will be monitored to prevent question leakage.
