Staff Reporter :The Education Ministry has rescheduled the opening of Secondary School Certificate (SSC) and its equivalent examinations to February 4 (Wednesday) due to the 72-hour hartal called by the BNP-led 20-party alliance.As per routine the Bengali first paper examination was scheduled to be held today (Monday). But now the Bengali first paper examination will be held on February 6 (Friday) from 9:00am to 12:00noon. The rest of the examinations will be held as per schedule amid the alliance’s nationwide blockade.”We have been compelled to reschedule the SSC and equivalent examinations as the BNP-led 20-party alliance did not respond to our repeated requests,” Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid told journalists at an emergency press conference at his Secretariat office on Sunday.He said as the government cannot push the students into barbarism, it decided to reschedule the examinations.”As we can’t be irresponsible like BNP-Jamaat, the Bengali first paper examination has been deffered. We hope that BNP-Jamaat will refrain from calling hartal during the rest of the examinations,” Nahid said. He came down heavily on the BNP-led 20-party alliance saying considering the fate of examinees they would withdraw hartal and blockade. The SSC and its equivalent examinations were scheduled to begin today (Monday) with participation of 14,79,666 students and conclude on March 10. The examinations will begin simultaneously under the country’s 10 education boards, including one of madrasah and another technical board.
