Verandahs double up as exam halls in some colleges in Andhra Pradesh

As Intermediate exams are in progress, a majority of the students are facing troubles due to lack of proper arrangements.

VIJAYAWADA: As Intermediate exams are in progress, a majority of the students are facing troubles due to lack of proper arrangements. Even though the officials of Board of Intermediate Education had given clear instructions to all the district in-charges, the latter had not taken any steps to ensure basic facilities for the students. Many examination halls in the State lack basic facilities like ventilation and even benches.

Over hundreds of students from Chittoor district got Venkateswara Junior College as their examination centre, but they were shocked the very first day when they visited the college. The rooms had no fans and the benches were rusted. Apart from the injuries, the students are more bothered about the rust stains to their answer booklets. Majority of the students are heavily sweating during the course of the examination.

In another instance, the colleges in rural areas of Kurnool and Anantapur districts have no benches and the students were made to sit on the floor to write the examination. Elsewhere in the government junior college in Srikakulam, students were made to sit on the wooden planks that were laid on the iron structure of the bench. As the planks were not fixed to the metal frame structure, students felt inconvenient, while writing the exam.

Students write exam sitting on the floor

The situation was almost the same across the State, where arrangements and facilities were poor.  SFI State president Noor Mohammad said the board officials had planned arrangements in the very last minute and the college managements just took out their old furniture from storerooms for use as additional furniture for examinations.“It is appalling to see students sitting on the floor and taking the examination in 21st century. Many of the colleges served drinking water in buckets and stuffed students in storerooms where there were no fans or lights. How can the officials call these managements first class?," he asks.

On the very first day of the Intermediate exam, TRR College at Kandukur village in Prakasam district has made students to sit in the open verandah where they had to brave the scorching sun while writing the exam. In fact two students had fallen ill after the examination. Apart from the students, the invigilation staff are also equally suffering, as there are no chairs for them to sit or a table to keep the material.

“The rooms are suffocating. It is hard to stand continuously for three long hours. Even the college managements are not heeding our requests and are not even supplying drinking water. Though we are in a miserable situation, we take pity on students who too are suffering like us without proper ventilation. At least from now, officials have to rectify problems and arrange proper facilities,” said AP Junior Lecturers Association secretary K Vijayalakshmi.

However, the Intermediate board officials have failed to respond to the issue even after repeated attempts to contact them. Earlier, Board of Intermediate Education secretary B Udayalakshmi said that the officials are looking after the arrangements and amenities for the students. She also assured the students of taking stern action against the district in-charges concerned if there is no improvement in arrangements. It remains to be seen what action would follow.

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