New Delhi: From making seating arrangements on the ground floor to setting up six dedicated centres for blind students, the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has made special provisions this year to help physically challenged students during their board examinations.

'This year a total of 2,132 physically challenged students are appearing for both the Class 10 and 12 board examinations. After discussing the problems they face, we have made a number of arrangements for them,' said CBSE chairperson Ashok Ganguly.
'For the first time, six examination centres have been set up purely for the blind candidates. Besides, we have asked all schools to allow physically challenged students to sit on the ground floor,' Ganguly said.

Of the 2,132 physically challenged students, 1,307 are appearing for the Class 10 board examinations and 825 students will take the Class 12 examinations.

'We had asked all the examination centres to collect their answer sheets and package it separately. It would help us evaluate their papers separately and know the problem areas,' M.C. Sharma, controller of examinations, told IANS.

Sharma said all facilities - use of calculators and computers and amanuensis (writer) - had been taken care of. Blind and spastic candidates would be provided services of an amanuensis free of cost, if they require.

So far, blind students get alternative questions in lieu of questions having visual inputs in English Communicative and Social Science in class 10. In the Class 12 examinations, they avail the benefit for history, geography and economics.

Added Ganguly: 'Like previous years, this year too they would get one hour more to complete their examinations. Separate question papers in enlarged print for Mathematics and Science and Technology in Class 10 are also provided to blind students.'

In 2007, a total of 705,152 candidates from 7,658 schools, will appear for the Class 10 examinations both in India and abroad - an increase of 8.11 percent over last year.

Similarly, 502,688 students from 4,789 schools would take the Class 12 examinations both in India and abroad. This is an increase of 9.59 percent from 2006.(IANS)