Education Minister appeals for calm to facilitate G.C.E. (O/L) exam

Education Minister Susil Premajayantha today appealed to the public to refrain from holding protests in a manner disrupting students and staff heading to sit the G.C.E (O/L) examination commencing tomorrow and attending to official duties. 

Minister Premajayantha addressing a news conference said that any protests close to fuel stations or on the main roads could delay the students or staff going for the exam tomorrow morning.

“My appeal to the public is to refrain from any activities which will affect the conduct of the examination”, he said.

The moves came as some 517,496 students prepared to sit the examination which has already been delayed by five months due to the COVID19 situation. Some 25,000 teachers and principals are helping to conduct the examination.

The Minister appealed to filling stations to issue fuel for vehicles carrying students and staff on the production of examination documents.

Examination Commissioner General L.M.D. Dharmasena said that the staff has been told to give an additional grace period in the event students turn up late to sit the examination due to transport difficulties.

He said usually about a 30 minute grace period is given, but this time they will be given an additional time so that nobody will be turned away at an examination centre.

The examination is being held in 3844 examination centres throughout the country.

Minister Premajayantha pointed out that the examination has been held under more difficult circumstances during the conflict in the north.  “You would recall even the LTTE did not disrupt conducting public examinations”, he said.