CBSE to reduce syllabus of 12th class from next year, informs HRD minister

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is going to reduce the syllabus for the 12th board examination from next year onwards. Due to lockdown in the country to combat Coronavirus infection, the academic year will shrink and students migrating to 12^th class in 2020 will get less time to study. So, this is a piece of good news for students said Human Resource Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal.

Loss due to lockdown

Schools are closed since March 16 due to the coronavirus outbreak across the country. It has been more than a month since all educational institutions are completely closed in the country. In normal circumstances, teachers fix the December deadline to complete the syllabus for students due for board exams. But, this year one month of the academic year has already been lost. It has become tough for both teachers and students to cover the syllabus under such dire circumstances.

JEE date not decided yet

The HRD minister said that CBSE has directed the “Syllabus Committees” to start work to reduce the syllabus for next year’s examinations. At the same time, regarding the entrance exam, the JEE Main will be held in June due to the prolonged lockdown. However, the exact date of the exam has not been finalized yet.

Private schools are advised not to charge increased fees

At the same time, the Union Minister also said that private schools should not take the increased fees because of the “difficult circumstances” of the present time. Private schools are advised not to charge an increased annual fee. Also, do not take fees together for three months and pay the employees of the schools on time.

Private schools across the country are in dilemma. As they are being advised not to force parents to pay fees on time due to economic losses being faced by citizens in the country after countrywide lockdown to combat coronavirus, also, they are advised not to increase school fees this year. But, schools across the country have teaching and non-teaching staff and they been asked to pay the salary of their employees on time. No, economic package or concrete roadmap has been drafted by the HRD ministry to tackle issues related to school fees and payment of salaries to school staff. Till now, it is up to school administrations to tackle these issues independently on their own.