The Maharashtra administration has determined to hold HSC (Class 12) and SSC (Class 10) exams through offline mode only from the next month, state minister Varsha Gaikwad said on Saturday. She made the announcement amid speculations that these exams could be held online considering the rise in coronavirus cases of late.

But if any student fails to appear for a particular written paper or multiple papers due to COVID-19 or because any member of the family is infected or due to lockdown at local level, then he or she will get a grace period of 15 days to give the test, the minister said.

The examination dates have already been announced and practical exams will be held once the written tests are over, Gaikwad added.

The Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) exam will start from April 23, while the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) will begin from April 29, the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) had announced last month.

''This year, the schools of the students will be their exam centres in view of the pandemic. Apart from the regular three-hour period of the exam, they will get extra half an hour to attempt the questions. For that, the exams will start at 10.30 am instead of 11 am,'' she said.

The written exams for Class 10 students will be held between April 29 and May 21, the minister added. ''Divyang students will get 20 minutes extra per hour.

Suppose a divyang is appearing for a three-hour exam, the student will get total four hours to attempt all the questions as per the new guidelines,'' she said.

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