The Education Minister of India, Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ is scheduled to conduct a meeting today, May 17, 2021, with the education secretaries of all states. The meeting shall be held through the virtual mode with the purpose of reviewing the impact of the COVId-19 pandemic on the education sector. Due to the pandemic, schools, colleges and educational institutes in the country have been closed for more than a year now. The minister shall also be reviewing the implementation of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
According to reports, sources from the education ministry clarified that Mr. Pokhriyal shall be meeting all the state education secretaries tomorrow through the online mode. He shall also be discussing the steps taken to promote online education across India. A review shall be conducted regarding the steps taken to implement NEP 2021 in various states.
Another key agenda shall be to discuss all the preparatory steps taken by the respective state governments to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, ways and methods to continue online education during the ongoing pandemic shall be analysed in detail.
Schools and colleges in few states had been reopened after the pandemic situation had normalised in the country. However, the second wave of coronavirus has again forced educational institutions to shut down. These disruptions along with constant rescheduling of exams is creating hurdles in the academic of students. This uncertainty is also putting immense pressure on students.
In the wake of the second wave of COVID-19, Mr. Pokhriyal had announced the cancellation of Class 10 CBSE board exams. However, the CBSE Class 12 board exams were postponed to a later date, depending on the pandemic situation. The rescheduled exam dates would be decided after reviewing the situation post June 01, 2021. Various state education boards had either cancelled or postponed their board exams. A discussion regarding board exams 2021 is likely to take place tomorrow.
Multiple national- and state-level competitive exams Like JEE Main 2021 were also postponed for the same reasons. However, students are waiting for more clarity on the tentative schedule of these exams. While JEE Main 2021 April session has been postponed, NTA is yet to release the application form and information brochure of NEET 2021. The national-level medical entrance test is scheduled on August 01, 2021.
The meeting scheduled tomorrow, May 17, 2021, shall be discussing certain important aspects of education. However, with reference to the agenda, there is no saying for certainty that exams like NEET and JEE Main shall be the topics of discussion tomorrow. Lakhs of candidates are ardently waiting for government to provide some clarity on the subject. However, any development regarding such exams is unlikely to come after tomorrow’s meeting. Still, candidates are requested to continue their preparation and not believe any speculations.
