Education minister Vinod Tawde on Monday announced the supplementary exam for students who had been unsuccessful in the first attempt at the HSC board exams would be held in July-August to ensure they do not lose a year and can continue their studies. The decision was based on the successful conduct of the supplementary exam in July last year for students who were unsuccessful in the SSC board exams. Many students who had initially been unsuccessful in the SSC exams managed to clear it and take admission in junior college.

In a decision that surprised many, after the results of the SSC board exams were announced, Mr Tawde had announced that the supplementary exam for the unsuccessful students that was to be held in September-October would be held in July so that the students could pass and continue their studies. The initiative saw a large number of students passing and after the results were declared in August manage to get admission to junior colleges thereafter. “The initiative received good reviews from all stakeholders and hence we decided to implement the same for the students appearing for the HSC board exams from this year. The results will be declared within a month of the exam being conducted so that the students can continue their higher studies,” said Mr Tawde.

Following studies pointing out a large number of students dropped out after being unsuccessful in the exams as they had to wait for a year before they could be eligible for admission to junior college, Mr Tawde decided to advance the date of the supplementary exams for SSC. The move ensured a large number of students passed and took admission in junior colleges. Around 1,38,792 students had registered for the SSC supplementary exams in July-August last year, of which 35,346 students had been successful. While the overall pass percentage was just 25.37, the fact that such a large number of students had saved one year made the minister replicate it for failed HSC students too.