Students demand BCS exam postponement

A group of students have demanded the postponement of the 41st BCS Preliminary Examination announced by the Bangladesh Public Service Commission on 19 March.

They said the date of the examination should be rescheduled in coordination with the opening of university and college halls and the vaccination programme. 

The students made the demand at a press conference at the Dhaka Reporters Unity's Nasrul Hamid Auditorium on Monday morning. 

In a written statement on behalf of the students, Yasir Shamim Osman of Dhaka University (DU) said, "The government has announced that no one will be allowed to enter the examination hall if they have Covid-19. But a lot of students are already infected. A BCS examinee of Jahangirnagar University [JU] has also died of the virus. If the test is taken now, many candidates will not be able to take part in it."

Sajjadur Rahman, a former JU student, said, "Examinations for several government jobs – including the inland shipping exam and postal department's exams – were already postponed this March due to the risk of Covid-19. We want the government to reschedule the date of the BCS exam again till after the vaccination activities are completed."

Tanvir Hasan, a DU student, said, "Most of the examinees have gone to their villages as the educational institutions have been closed during the pandemic. All the campus halls are closed as well. If the exam is held now, the students will not have a place to stay in Dhaka. Many students do not have the financial means to rent a hotel room."