O and A level exams postponed amid fears of Coronavirus
Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mahmood says that the decision to postpone O and A level exams was taken in a meeting where Cambridge Head in Pakistan Ms Uzma Yousaf was present.
ISLAMABAD: (UrduPoint/Pakistan Point News-March 18th, 2020) The examinations of O and A levels to be held in May and June were postponed till further orders, Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mahmood said here Tuesday.
Taking to Twitter, the federal minister said that the decision to postpone O and A level examinations was taken in a meeting where Ms Uzma Yousaf, head of Cambridge in Pakistan was also present. He made this tweeted to answer questions of many people on his personal account.
Earlier, he had tweeted that the exams of O and A level were postponed and the new dates would be announced later by Cambridge.
On Wednesday, the federal minister addressed a press conference and said that all examinations due in May were postponed till June 01 amid fear of Coronavirus outbreak in the country. He said the government would assess the situation in an Education Conference to be held on March 27.
“We’ll consult with all provincial education ministers on March 27 and will make further decision that whether the schools should be shut down or be opened.
“ Exams of all 29 boards of Pakistan will schedule their exams after June 1st. Not even the exams of Cambridge will be held till June,” said the minister. He also said that his ministry apprised Prime Minister Imran Khan regarding the decision.
“We held a meeting in this regard yesterday and took this decision for larger public interest. Coronavirus is spreading through social interaction and therefore, we need to minimize it,” he said.
The tally of Coronavirus in Pakistan reached to 245, with Sindh at the top where 172 people were confirmed with this virus. The situation in Sindh is turning from bad to worse by leading it to “Lockdown”.
All educational institutions across the country are closed amid rising cases of Coronavirus. The federal and provincial governments are making all-out efforts to control this pandemic that has claimed 7000 life and left over 170,000 people infected across the world.