Education Minister Dr. A N M. Ehsanul Haque Milon has expressed regret in parliament over the controversy surrounding the decision to hold the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) examinations despite days of heavy rainfall and widespread waterlogging, as well as over some of his recent remarks.
The minister made the statement while responding to a supplementary question during the budget session of the Jatiya Sangsad (National Parliament) at around 7:30pm on Tuesday. He also explained why it was not possible to postpone the examinations despite the adverse weather conditions.
"My personal remarks have offended many people. I did not intentionally say anything to hurt anyone. Nevertheless, if anyone has been offended, I express my regret," he said.
Earlier, during the supplementary question session, lawmaker Rumeen Farhana asked why the HSC examinations were not postponed for one or two days despite continuous rainfall that caused severe waterlogging in major cities, including Dhaka and Chattogram. She wanted to know what obstacles prevented the authorities from rescheduling the examinations.
In response, the education minister said the HSC examinations were being held simultaneously at around 2,700 examination centres across all 64 districts of the country. Due to heavy rainfall and flooding, examinations had already been suspended in phases in Rangamati, Bandarban and Khagrachhari, and later under the Chattogram Education Board.
He said the Ministry of Education closely monitored the overall situation until 5:00pm on the day before the examination. During that period, the ministry maintained regular communication with the superintendents of police (SPs) of all 64 districts, the divisional commissioners of the country`s eight divisions, chairpersons of all education boards, district and upazila administrations, and the Bangladesh Meteorological Department.
"All of them informed us that the weather was expected to improve and that there would be no obstacles to conducting the examinations. Based on that assessment, we decided to proceed with the exams," he said.
Dr. Milon added that on the morning of the examination, authorities found the grounds of the Cumilla Government Women`s College examination centre inundated with water. As soon as the matter came to their attention, the local mayor, Fire Service, police and the deputy commissioner were instructed to take the necessary measures.
Candidates were subsequently transported by boat to the college`s five-storey building, where the examination was conducted.
He said one examinee whose clothes became wet was allowed to return home to change into dry clothes before sitting for the examination. The examination at that centre began one hour later than scheduled, and the duration was extended by an additional hour to ensure that all candidates received the full allotted time.
The minister said that, according to reports submitted to the Ministry of Education by deputy commissioners and upazila nirbahi officers (UNOs), no other examination centre in the country, apart from Cumilla Government Women`s College, experienced any weather-related disruption.
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