CBSE class X, XII exams from tom; 12.07 lakh pupils to appea

New Delhi, Feb 28 (UNI) The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is all set to conduct the twelfth and tenth standard examinations from tomorrow, for which more than 12.07 lakh pupils will appear across the country.

For the twelfth standard examination, which will be held from March 1 to April 10, about 5,02,688 students, including 2,11,582 girls, will appear.

The number has registered an increase of 9.59 per cent compared to last year, when 4,54,480 candidates wrote the examination.

More than 7,05,152 pupils, including 4,12,455 boys, will appear for the tenth class examination, which is being held from March 2 to 28. The figure for tenth class has also recorded an increase of 8.11 per cent from last year when 6,47,992 students appeared.

CBSE chairman Ashok Ganguly said all the preparations for the smooth conduct of the examination had been completed.

Advising students to stay calm during the examination, Mr Ganguly asked the pupils to treat them as a routine educational process.

''Failure in the board examination is not the end of the educational process,'' he added.

He said the numbers of students appearing for the examination have shown an upward trend which is commendable.

The Board, this year also, announced a slew of measures, including 15-minute ''cool off'' time, to save pupils from suffering exam- related anxiety and stress.

It has re-designed the question papers of ten subjects-- three for class ten and seven for class twelve-- to allow the students to complete the three-hour question paper in only two-and-a-half hours.

The CBSE, this year also, will provide the ''cool off'' period, given to read the question paper before the start of the writing time, to help the pupils destress.

''The Board is making all out efforts to ensure that the board examinations are as stress free as possible.... We have decided to continue with cool off time to bring near synchronisation between speed and accuracy,'' Mr Ganguly said.

He said the ''blue print'' of seven class twelve papers -- Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Economics, Business Studies and Accounts-- have been redesigned. Similarly, for class ten science, mathematics and social science question papers have been restructured, he added.

The number of pages in the main answer book has also been increased to cut down on wastage of time.

In the Delhi region, while 2,07,317 class ten candidates will write the examination, 3.62 per cent more than 2006, for class twelve 1,56,257 will appear, marking an increase of 7.06 per cent.

The number of candidates in special category, including handicapped and blind, from Class ten has risen to 1,307 compared to 950 in 2006.

However, a reverse trend was witnessed among class twelve candidates in the same category. The number dipped to 825 pupils this year from last year's 937.

Among the total 2,490 centres for class ten, 643, including 39 in Delhi, have been declared sensitive.

Similarly for class twelve, of the 2,276 total centres, 489, including 30 in Delhi have been declared sensitive, where additional security and observers will be placed ''All security arrangements have been made for the sensitive centres. The local administration will also help assist us in ensuring smooth and fair conduct of the examination, '' the Board Chairman said.

In foreign countries, including the Gulf, about 37 centres have been set up for class twelve and 33 for class ten.

UNI