Special Measures Announced for Affected HSC Candidates

Students who were unable to sit their Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) examinations because of heavy rainfall, flooding and severe weather will be given a special opportunity to take the missed examinations using the same question papers as candidates whose examinations were postponed in parts of the country, the Education and Primary Education Adviser has announced.

The announcement was made on Wednesday, 15 July, during a statement delivered under Rule 300 on the 25th sitting of the second and first budget session of the 13th National Parliament. The parliamentary session began at 3:00 pm and was chaired by Deputy Speaker Barrister Kaiser Kamal.

Addressing Parliament, the Education Adviser said that the 2026 HSC and equivalent examinations are being held at 2,697 examination centres across Bangladesh, with a total of 1,270,583 candidates taking part. While the nationwide examination schedule has largely continued as planned, persistent heavy rainfall and adverse weather conditions forced the postponement of examinations under the Chattogram Education Board in five districts: Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Khagrachhari, Rangamati and Bandarban.

The Adviser explained that the impact of the severe weather was not confined to those five districts. A number of candidates in other parts of the country were also unable to attend their scheduled examinations because of localised flooding, transport disruptions and other unavoidable circumstances linked to the adverse weather.

To ensure that these students are not unfairly disadvantaged, the Ministry of Education has decided that candidates who missed their examinations for such unavoidable reasons will be allowed to sit the affected papers on the same date as the rescheduled examinations for the Chattogram Education Board. They will take the examinations using an identical question paper prepared by their respective education boards, ensuring consistency and fairness in the assessment process.

The Adviser stressed that the HSC examination represents one of the most significant milestones in a student’s academic journey, influencing admission to higher education and future career opportunities. Given the importance of the examination, the government has decided to extend this special arrangement so that students affected by circumstances beyond their control can complete their examinations without losing an academic year.

In the same parliamentary statement, the Adviser also addressed concerns surrounding errors identified in the Physics First Paper examination. He confirmed that officials responsible for preparing the faulty question paper have already been suspended pending further action.

Seeking to reassure students and their families, he announced that all candidates who sat the Physics First Paper examination would receive full marks for Questions 6 and 7, where errors had been identified in the question paper. The decision, he said, was taken to ensure that no examinee suffers academic disadvantage because of mistakes made during the question-setting process.

The government’s latest decisions are intended to preserve the integrity of the 2026 HSC examination while ensuring that candidates affected by extreme weather or administrative errors are treated fairly. The measures also reflect an effort to maintain equal opportunities for all examinees despite the disruptions caused by the recent adverse weather conditions.