CBSE postpones Class X, XII Board exams till March 31

New Delhi: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Wednesday postponed ongoing Class X, XII examinations till March 31 in view of the Coronavirus outbreak.

"All ongoing CBSE examinations in India and abroad postponed till March 31 and will be rescheduled thereafter... after an assessment of the situation," CBSE Secretary Anurag Tripathi said.

"All ongoing evaluation work will be suspended during the period," he added.

The CBSE announcement came following a directive from the HRD Ministry saying exams are important but the safety and security of students and teachers are equally important.

With the Ministry of Human Resource Development directing all educational institutions to postpone all ongoing examinations for 10 days, it is applicable to all university examinations and Joint Entrance Examination (MAIN) as well.

Meanwhile, the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) has suspended all examination-related activities till March 31 on the instructions of HRD Secretary Amit Khare. "We will review the situation closer to March 31 and decide on the future course of action. All concerned are requested to take pro-active measure," said Chandra Bhushan Sharma, Chairman of NIOS.