G.C.E. O/L exams to go ahead as planned on May 23: Exams Commissioner

The Examination Department has finalised arrangements for the conduct of the G. C. E. Ordinary Level examination due to begin on May 23 and have drawn plans to go ahead with the examinations without interruptions.

Admission of school candidates will be dispatched from tomorrow onwards while the admission papers for private candidates will be uploaded on the website and can be downloaded by the candidates, Exams Commissioner General L. M. D. Dharmasena told Education Times.

“If there are any amendments to be made students can inform the respective principal and make the changes. A downloaded printout through the school will be accepted as a valid admission paper,” he said.

A total number of 517,496 candidates will sit the examinations. The examination will be held in 3842 centres.

He said 70 per cent of examination papers amounting to Rs. 10.3 million papers have already been printed with the final set being printed.

Shortages of fuel and other issues were taken into consideration when the papers were transported to the respective centres under Police protection, he said.

Discussions have also been held with the Disaster Management

Centre, the Police, Defence Ministry and the Education Ministry to make preparations for the exams.

Keeping with the regulations all private classes will be suspended from May 17.

Education Ministry Secretary Kapila Perera said the exams originally scheduled to be held in December last year were differed by five months to complete the syllabuses.

“The students should not worry as the syllabuses have been completed and the question papers will be made accordingly,” he said.

He said they have no way of further delaying the exams as they are already behind schedule and he also said revision classes could be held in the next two weeks.

Meanwhile last year’s G. C. E. A/L exam results will be released by the last week of July. The exams were held in December.