Punjab govt fails to implement students’ promotion, exam policy

LAHORE:Despite almost a week after the provincial cabinet’s approval, the Punjab government has failed to implement the promotion and exam policy 2020.

Besides delay in the result of class 10 exams and promotion of class 9 and class 11 students to next grades by all the nine Boards of Intermediate & Secondary Education (BISEs) in the province, it has added to growing anxiety and concern among students and their parents.

The provincial cabinet chaired by Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar had approved the promotion and exam policy in the backdrop of Covid-19 on September 14. Sources in the Punjab Higher Education Department (HED) said the department could only instruct the BISEs to announce class 10 result and announce promotion of class 9 and class 11 students after it received approved meeting minutes of the cabinet meeting from the Chief Minister Secretariat. “We are still waiting for the approved meeting minutes to issue a formal notification vis-à-vis promotion and exam policy,” commented an HED official who wished to remain anonymous. Another official said even if the department had received it on Saturday (today), the result and promotion could have been announced the same day.

On May 7, 2020, Federal Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood had announced the cancellation of board exams throughout the country while on May 14, 2020, the decision to promote students to next classes without exams was announced. The Punjab HED official said that since there was no provision in the Punjab Boards of Intermediate and Secondary Education Act 1976 to promote students without exams, the approval of the provincial cabinet was sought to direct the BISEs to announce results (Class 10) and promotion of students to next grades.

Unlike other provinces, BISEs in Punjab had conducted the class 10 exam (without practicals) before the Covid-19 related closure and the boards in Punjab were allowed to announce the result of class 10 exams and announce promotion of class 9 and class 11 students.

When contacted, Punjab Minister for Higher Education Raja Yasir Humayun Sarfraz said that the exam and promotion policy had been approved by the cabinet and a formal notification would be issued after the HED Punjab received approved meeting minutes. He said all nine BISEs in Punjab were ready and the subsequent exercise to announce promotion and announce the result was just a click away. The minister hoped that the results of class 10 and promotion of class 9 and class 11 students to next grades would be announced next week.