Online Desk :

The Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) examinations commenced in Chattogram on Sunday, despite challenging weather conditions, with students and guardians facing significant disruptions due to incessant rain.

Heavy rains since morning caused considerable hardship for examinees and their guardians, leading to severe traffic congestion in front of key examination centers, including Dampara Police Line, Chittagong College, Jamal Khan Khastagir, and Agrabad.

The congestion began to ease after the exams started at 10 am, with traffic flow improving by 10:30 am.

The Bangla (compulsory) first paper under the Chattogram Education Board marks the beginning of the HSC examinations, which will continue until August 11.

According to the Chattogram Education Board, 106,034 students from 238 colleges are participating in the HSC examinations. Within the district, including the metropolitan area, there are 76,179 candidates. In the metropolitan area alone, 37,492 candidates are registered.

Education Board Secretary Narayan Chandra Nath reported that no significant issues have been reported from any examination centers so far. He added, If a candidate arrives at the examination center five minutes late due to weather conditions, they will be granted an additional five minutes, he assured.

Meanwhile, meteorologist AKM Nazmul Haque issued warnings for the Chattogram and Cox’s Bazar region, forecasting squally winds with speeds of 60-80 kph. Riverports have been advised to display Naval Warning Signal No. 2 due to the prevailing weather conditions.